Give My Heart to Kaitlyn

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5 Years Later

January 1880

Damn but if there was one place where the wind could quite literally cut a man in two when it blew in January, it was in the Dakotas. Pete pulled his duster coat tighter around himself and lifted the collar to protect his neck as he pulled his hat down.

His vision was beginning to blur and he was leaving a trail of dark crimson blood in the snow as he stumbled along this barren empty road. The only positive thing about the cold was that it had numbed his body and he no longer could feel the pain from the bullet wounds in his abdomen and arm.

He should have known better than to get drunk in that town. He should have known better than to start playing poker and he should have known better than to pick a fight with a man who went by the name of ‘Skinner’ but good sense tended to leave Pete whenever whiskey or poker was involved.

He had low impulse control is what his mama had always said. His pa had always called it a stupidity problem and he assumed they both had been right. They were probably both watching him from heaven right now. His mama was probably wringing her hands and crying while his pa was shaking his head in utter disgust and disappointment.

Pete figured he’d probably die out here but he didn’t really care and there wasn’t a soul alive who would miss him. He was a wanted man in Louisiana now and hadn’t been back home in five years. Funny how much life could change in an instant. One second you are an up and coming lawman with dreams and a bright future and the next you were running for your life from a bloodthirsty posse, hell-bent on stringing you up by your neck for something you didn’t do.

The wind roared in his ears and took his hat off his head. He cursed as his greasy blond hair whipped around his face and he debated chasing after the hat. Good sense said to let the hat go but what kind of man abandoned his hat?

He stumbled off the road to where his hat had become hung on some long thistle sticking out of a snow bank. Of all the lawless territories he could have chosen to run to, he had to pick the Dakota’s. He’d been up here for a long time… Five years by the best he could figure, though time didn’t seem to matter much anymore.

At least he wasn’t a wanted man all over the country and since the Dakota’s weren’t a state, there was no law here and he didn’t have to worry about being captured at all. He plopped his hat back on his head and once again began to stumble along the road.

A buzzard flew overhead and cawed loudly and Pete quickly pulled his revolver and shot it dead. He snorted as it fell into a snow bank.

“Mock me again, you son of a bitch.” he grumbled. Pete stumbled a couple of steps and fell to his knees. He tried to find the strength to push himself back up but his arms were shaking too bad.

His shirt and pants were drenched in blood and his brow was slick with sweat despite the frigid chill in the air. This was just great. He was going to die here on this snow covered road and with the snowflakes currently falling from the dreary gray sky, he’d be lucky if anyone found his body before the spring thaw.

He was twenty-four years old and hadn’t been able to do half of what he’d wanted to in his life. He had wanted to be a lawman. A good lawman that helped the helpless. Thanks to Marston Jacobs and that no account Marshall Montgomery that dream had been thoroughly shot, stabbed and burned to death.

He wouldn’t ever admit it to anyone but he had wanted to find love. A soft, caring woman all his own. They would have a small cozy house full of love and laughter, just the way his parents’ house had been.

He collapsed on the snow and flipped onto his back so he could stare up at the group of buzzards still flying overhead. He ran his hand over his scarred cheek and scratched at his stubble covered jaw. Again he was thankful for the cold because he was sure if it wasn’t for being nearly frozen solid, he would be in a lot of pain.

He decided that since he was dying it would be okay to reflect on how much he had changed in the last years of his life. Gone was that nineteen year old boy with beliefs that the world was black and white. Back then bad men had been bad and good men had been good.

Then he had met Marston Jacobs and he had learned about Marshall Montgomery and his views had been forever changed. Marston Jacobs was a ‘bad’ man. He was a murderer, a thief, a man who took what he wanted from women and left many children fatherless and yet he had spared Pete’s life more than once. He had been kind and even trusted Pete with a message for his wife.

Marshall Montgomery had been a ‘good’ man. A man with a badge. A man who was sworn to serve and protect. But he had been a man with secrets. A man with an agenda. He didn’t care about helping anyone(unless you counted the way he had kept his brother from getting justice from the law for all of his sickening crimes). He had only cared about furthering himself and he had threatened to kill a man’s wife and children to get that done.

Pete had been changed by those two men. He had sworn that he would be different than the marshall and he would be a lawman people could count on. He had vowed that he would also be understanding to outlaws and treat them as men just the same as everyone else. He would never be cruel and heartless.

Then something else had happened that had changed him once again. Instead of believing that he had no idea what had happened to the marshall, the other deputies had blamed Pete. They hadn’t thought he had done it but they knew he knew who had. They had tied him up and beaten him but he was not about to give up Marston’s name. They had burnt his face with a heated pipe but still he had kept his mouth shut(except of course for his screams of pain).

He had managed to escape from them and he had run. He had wanted to go somewhere where there was no law, no crooked lawmen. No one to show him how wrong he’d been about life. How young, foolish and idealistic his beliefs and ideas had been. He had actually thought he could make a difference.

He snorted with laughter now at his own foolishness. Now his best friends were saloons, whiskey and poker tables. And now it only seemed fitting that he was going to die after getting shot doing what he loved the most. It wasn’t his fault that the dealer had dealt him three aces but had Skinner listened to reason? Nope. He and his friends had beaten Pete, brought him out to the middle of nowhere, shot him up, stolen his horse and all his belongings(except for his revolver) and then had ridden off.

A quiet kind of calm settled over Pete as he lay there in the snow. Death wasn’t so bad. He just felt a little sleepy is all. He wasn’t afraid of death, after all what did he have to live for? He folded his hands behind his head, crossed his ankles and let his eyes drift closed.

A/N: I know it’s short but it’s a start! Tell me what you think :)

Chapter Two

“I miss January in Texas.” Marston grumbled as he pulled his coat tighter around himself and brought the cart to a stop outside the doctor’s office on the outskirts of Windfall. Kaitlyn nodded.

“Me too.” she agreed as she tugged the edges of her bonnet around her cold reddened cheeks and then folded her gloved hands tight in her lap.

“You all just need to toughen up is all.” Langly said with a grin and Kaitlyn glared at him but said nothing. Langly was one year younger than her own seventeen years and he thought of himself as being all grown up. Much to his own irritation he had never outgrown his freckles and he had kept their mama’s bright red hair. He was a little over six feet tall but he was all arms and legs and very gangly. He liked to imagine he was tough and manly and despite the way he seemed to so easily get on her nerves, she loved her brother.

“You’re right, kid.” Marston replied dryly as he jumped from the cart and walked to the other side of the seat. He took Kaitlyn by her tiny waist and lifted her off, setting her gently on her feet. “Not a single thing tough about me.” Kaitlyn smiled at her pa. She knew he was joking. He was the single toughest man that she knew.

He had saved her life when she’d been young and he was the only man that she truly trusted. Everything about him was rough. His hands, his voice, the way he walked… everything oozed danger and power. Yet she knew that when it came to taking care of his family he was the softest and most caring man that God had ever created. She would never tell him that though…. She knew that would only cause him to complain that his stomach was hurting.

“I’ll see you in a couple of hours, pa.” Kaitlyn said as she stepped up onto the doctors porch. Marston nodded as he pulled himself back up onto the cart and Langly climbed up into the seat from the back.

“Langly and I won’t be working long. Your mama will worry if we aren’t home a good hour before dark.”

“We’re grown men, pa, we don’t have to worry about rushing home like mama wants.”

“Spoken like a young man who truly has no idea.” Marston replied with a grin. Kaitlyn listened to them go back and forth as her pa drove the cart away. She turned and was about to grab the handle of the worn wooden door when it was jerked open and Doctor Rankin was standing there looking exhausted. His gray eyes lit up though when he saw her and he ran his hand through his graying black hair.

“Thank goodness you’re here!” he exclaimed. “What a night I had last night and what a morning this morning! Two births in the middle of the night, a lung infection in a toddler and then I get back to the office to find Paul Sanchez at my door with a nearly dead man who’d been shot and nearly frozen to death.”

“Where’s the man?” Kaitlyn asked as she stepped into the parlor and removed her bonnet, gloves and coat. As always the doctors home was warm as he kept fires going in every room. He said there were too many sick folk that came in and out to let air have a chill. She smoothed out the skirt of her brown wool dress and folded her hands in front of her.

“He’s in the patient room. I was just about to go about removing the bullet and I was hoping you’d show up soon.” Kaitlyn nodded and rolled up the sleeves of her dress. She grabbed her white apron from the hook by the patient room door and slid it over her neck. She walked into the patient room, not sparing a glance at the man in the bed as she washed her hands in the basin.

This is what she loved. She longed to be a doctor, to make a difference and help others, but no one would ever accept a woman doctor in this day and time so she settled for helping out the doc and he really seemed to appreciate her being around.

“So the Masterson’s and McKinnley’s both had their babies last night?” Kaitlyn asked as she dried her hands on a towel.

“Yes.” Doctor Rankin replied as he laid out some tools on the small table beside the bed the patient was lying in. “Two bouncing baby boys.”

“You should have picked me up on the way to the Masterson’s, I would have helped you.” Kaitlyn informed him with a bit of disappointment. She had been helping with Gloria Masterson’s checkups throughout the woman’s pregnancy and she had hoped to be there when the baby was born. She grabbed a bottle of disinfectant off the white shelf in the corner and poured a little on her hands.

“And have your pa shoot me for riding in in the middle of the night?” he asked with a laugh. “No thank you.”

“Pa wouldn’t have shot you. He just talks tough, he’s not really all that mean.” she assured him though she could tell the doctor wasn’t convinced. She was fairly sure her pa wouldn’t shoot anyone, unless of course that someone threatened the family, but for some reason her pa liked for people to believe that he was meaner than he was.

Kaitlyn sighed as she walked to the bed and looked at the man lying there for the first time. He had a sheet covering his legs and doctor Rankin had already removed his shirt. She saw that his body was dirty and covered in blood. His face was drawn as if in pain while he lay there motionless. She could tell that he was tall, probably just over six feet, and his dark blond hair was dirty and tangled around his face.

She found herself staring at that face. On the left he looked almost boyish except for the blond stubble on his jaw. He lacked the sharp angles that Marston had. He was softer looking despite his ragged appearance. But on the right side of his face… Doctor Rankin must have heard her intake of breath because he nodded.

“Looks like somebody hated this poor man enough to burn his face at some point.” he said matter of factly. Kaitlyn nodded as she studied the large burn scar on his cheek. It started just below his eye and was long and thin down to the curve of his chin. It almost looked as if someone had heated up a metal rod and stuck it against his face. She knew what kind of man this probably was. There was only one kind of man that wandered the wilderness alone in the middle of winter with scars on his face and bullet holes in his body and that was the bad kind. She had seen enough of the bad kind to know one when she saw him. The bad kind had been all she’d known for one long year before Marston had rescued her.

“The wound in the abdomen is a through and through but the bullet is still in his arm. It shouldn’t be too hard to remove though.” Doctor Rankin said and Kaitlyn turned her attention away from the mans face and focused instead on his wounds. She looked up at the doctor and saw the fatigue on his face. The lines around his eyes looked deeper and his graying hair was sticking out wildly around his face. Instantly, she knew what he was going to say before he said it.

“I believe you can handle this one on your own, Kaitlyn. I’m plumb beat and going to go try to get some rest for a while.”

“But doc….” she said as she felt that nagging fear clutching at her heart. Doctor Rankin smiled comfortingly.

“Sweetheart, he is unconscious from blood loss and the large dose of laudanum I gave him. Even if he does wake up he won’t be in any shape to harm you and if, by chance, something does happen you can yell for me and I’ll come running.” Kaitlyn knew her fears were ridiculous and so she quickly forced a smile and nodded.

“Go rest.” she agreed softly. “I can handle all of this.” Doctor Rankin sighed with relief and walked from the room.

Kaitlyn took a deep breath and then wet a rag in the bucket of hot water the doctor already had waiting. She began wiping clean the wound on the man’s arm and then she poured some of the antiseptic on it.

The man let out a moan and his head thrashed from side to side several times. Kaitlyn jumped away from him, her body freezing in fear and her heart ceasing to beat as she waited for him to jump from the bed and grab her.

She laughed lightly at her own foolishness when the man did not awaken.

“Get a grip, Kaitlyn.” she scolded herself. There was something about this man that just looked dangerous, even in his unconscious state, and for some reason he was causing memories of her life before Marston and Rose to come flashing back to her. Memories of the rough touches, the hits, the smacks, the whips. Memories of the sweat, the stench, the pain as men had taken her innocence and then broken her spirit.

The man moaned again and it snapped her out of her memories. She had to get him patched up or else he was going to bleed to death. She had dedicated her life to saving lives and she couldn’t just let this man die because he brought back bad memories.

She blew out a breath to blow the loose wispy strands of her golden hair from her face and quickly went to work.

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She cleaned and dressed the man’s wounds and was beginning to clean the dirt from his chest when he stirred beneath her and his big, calloused hand suddenly closed around her arm.

She wanted to scream but her fear had her voice lodged in her throat. Her eyes widened and she quickly looked at his face to see that his eyes were open and staring at her intently.

His eyes were deep and brown, the laudanum had them looking glossy, and they were nearly wild with delirium.

“Where am I?” he demanded gruffly. “Who are you?”

“S..sir.” she gasped, her voice louder and more panicked than she would have liked. “You are in the doctors office in Windfall up in the Dakota territories. You’ve been shot…” Her words drifted off and then stopped completely when he released her arm and raised his fingers to her face.

Her breath caught in her throat and her heart thundered as his rough fingertips slid across the soft skin of her cheek. Fear filled her but there was something else. Some undercurrent of heat that she had never felt before. It made her shift uncomfortably in the chair she was sitting in.

“Am I dead?” he asked quietly, his eyes seeming to have trouble focusing as they kept drifting closed only to have him force them open again.

“No..” Kaitlyn replied, her voice shaky as his fingertips continued to stroke her face.

“You’re an angel. A beautiful angel.” he replied, his voice husky. Kaitlyn was surprised by how nice his voice sounded. It washed over her and had her leaning into his touch. She had been told time and again that she was beautiful. There were many men in town and men that had been passing through that had tried to woo her but she had not accepted any of them. Not because she thought she was above them but because the thought of being alone with a man… The thought of letting a man touch her, kiss her, make love to her,  filled her with a fear so all consuming that she nearly became sick with it.

Then Kaitlyn realized that this wounded, clearly troubled man was touching her and instead of being afraid she was leaning into his hand. She jumped quickly to her feet and broke the contact between them.

“You need rest, sir.” she said as she rolled down her sleeves. The man tilted his head on his pillow and looked up at her.

“You saved me.” he said with awe. “My angel.” She shook her head.

“No, Paul Sanchez saved you. He brought you here to the doc’s.” she argued quietly as she began gathering up the dirty towels and rags. She was in a hurry to get away from this man who was causing feelings in her that she didn’t understand and didn’t like.

“What is your name, angel?” the man asked sleepily and Kaitlyn spared a glance at him to see that he was barely holding on to consciousness.

“Kaitlyn.” she replied, without knowing why she was telling him. A ghost of a smile appeared on his face, curving the long puckered scar on his right cheek and putting a dimple in his left.

“Kaitlyn, my life is yours.” he mumbled almost incoherently and then he slipped back into sleep. His snores almost instantly filling the small room. Kaitlyn stood there and stared at him for several long moments. Surely that had simply been the blood loss and laudanum speaking. She didn’t even know this man!

She quickly cleaned the room, washed her hands and face in the basin and then left the room, closing the door behind her.

She found doctor Rankin in the kitchen. He was sitting in his favorite chair beside the window and his head was thrown back as he snored loudly, the hairs in his thick black mustache blowing wildly with every breath. Instead of waking him she slipped back out of the room. She walked to the parlor and pulled on her coat, her bonnet and her gloves.

She walked out onto the porch and sat in the rocking chair to wait for her pa and Langly. She knew it wouldn’t be much longer before they came to get her.

She had been right and less than an hour later Marston and Langly came riding up in the cart. She knew that her pa hated riding in that cart. He preferred going on horseback, saying that getaway was quicker that way; a throwback to his life as an outlaw. But she knew that he used the cart on days that she came into town to make the trip more comfortable for her. Just another sign to prove that the man would do anything to make sure his family was taken care of.

“How did it go?” Marston asked after he had helped her into the cart.

“Good. There was a man there that had been shot.” she replied as she watched the buildings of the small town passing by.

“Shot?” Marston asked with surprise. She knew why he was surprised. Shootings were not that common around here. Most folks were peace loving and helped each other out to survive. Something that was needed up here, especially in the winter.

“Where was he shot at?” Langly asked with excitement. Kaitlyn gave him a stern look.

“Being excited over another man getting shot is hardly acceptable.” she warned him and he sneered.

“You wouldn’t last ten minutes in the real world, Kaitlyn. You’re too soft.” Marston raised a brow.

“This isn’t the real world?” he asked and Langly shook his head as he leaned against the side of the cart and pulled his stained brown hat lower on his head.

“Nope. Everyone steers clear and watches what they say around us because we are Jacob Marston’s kids.” Marston shrugged and settled back in the seat. He didn’t see anything wrong with that. As a matter of fact that’s the way he liked it. He wanted the world to know that he’d kill anyone that dared mess with his family.

“I don’t care what you say, Langly, you’re just trying to get me riled and it won’t work.” Kaitlyn said matter of factly.

“Can’t blame a man for trying.” Langly replied with a grin as he patted her on top of her bonnet and she was helpless to keep from smiling back at him.

“No, but she can blame a boy.” Marston said with a chuckle and Langly glared at him for a moment but Kaitlyn knew that he respected Marston too much to say anything against him. And she knew that Marston was proud of Langly and simply teasing him. She hoped that Langly realized that too.

“So where was he shot?” Langly asked again.

“The abdomen, but it was a through and through and then he was shot in the arm and I had to get the bullet out.”

“You’re turning into a fine doc.” Marston said proudly and she blushed and shook her head.

“I could never be a doc. Most folks don’t trust a woman the way they do a man.”

“Most folks are stupid.” Marston replied matter of factly and Langly nodded in agreement.

“Sis, if I ever get shot up, you have my permission to be my doc.” he said with a grin and Marston shook his head.

“You ain’t never gonna get shot up.” he said sternly. “And trust me when I say you don’t want to be. It sure as hell don’t feel good.”

“I guess uncle Jeremiah gets shot enough for all of us.” Langly agreed with a nod. “But I still think you’d be a good doc, Kaitlyn.”

“Thank you both.” she replied, loving the men in her life with all of her heart.

“So do you know what the mans name was?” Marston asked her and she shook her head.

“No.” she replied. Marston saw her shiver out of the corner of his eyes and he frowned.

“Did the man do or say something to you?” he asked, fully prepared to turn the cart around and shoot the man a little better than the last person had. Kaitlyn shook her head quickly.

“No, no he never woke up at all.” she lied. She wasn’t sure why she lied to him and it made her stomach hurt to do so but she knew how protective he was and for some reason she didn’t want him angry with the man at the doc’s.

Marston nodded and turned his attention back to the road but he gripped the reins a little tighter. Kaitlyn was lying to him. He knew how to read body language and tell when a person was lying and Kaitlyn was right now. He wasn’t sure why it bothered him so bad. He supposed it was because she had never once done it before and he wanted his children to trust him with the truth all the time. No matter what the truth was.

Kaitlyn was oblivious to her pa’s thoughts as she watched the scenery passing by. Snow covered plains and hills. Trees in the distance, looking black against the angry gray sky. She wondered if they’d get more snow tonight and prayed they wouldn’t. If it snowed then it would be days before they would be able to get back into town. She refused to acknowledge the fact that she was bothered by the thought of not getting to see the mystery man again for days. After all, he had scared her… hadn’t he?

Chapter Three

“We’re only human baby, we walk on broken ground. We lose our way, we come unwound. We’re turnin’ circles baby, we’re never satisfied. We fall from grace. Forget we can fly. But through all the tears that we cry, we’ll survive. Cuz when we’re torn apart, shattered and scarred, love as the grace to save us. We’re just two tarnished hearts, but in each others arms, we become saints and angels.” Sara Evans ‘Saints and Angels’

“Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!” Kaitlyn was awakened the next morning by her little sister’s sing song voice as she jumped up and down on the foot of her bed. “Wake up, Kaitlyn. We got more snow! Mama said we can go play in it!” Lucy exclaimed. Kaitlyn moaned and tried to bury her face back into her pillow but Lucy laughed and grabbed Kaitlyn’s hand in one of her pudgy five year old ones.

“C’mon!” she grunted as she tugged on Kaitlyn as hard as she could. Kaitlyn laughed loudly and flipped over onto her back.

“Okay. Okay. What’s for breakfast though because I’m hungry.” she said as she took in her younger sisters angelic features. Lucy had been born with red hair it had become dark brown like Marston’s as she’d gotten older, though she had kept Rose’s curls. Her eyes were deep blue like Rose’s and freckles littered her face. She had gotten Marston’s dark complexion and his impatient temper.

“I don’t know.” Lucy grumbled in a very Marston-like manner. “I didn’t ask, I just want to go play in the snow.”

“Yes, well breakfast first, then chores, then playing.” Kaitlyn said with a smile as she poked her sister’s tiny nose. Lucy scrunched her face up and giggled.

“Don’t poke my nose.” she squealed. “And pa said he’d take care of the chores today so we could play!” Kaitlyn couldn’t help but laugh at the way Lucy was all but bursting with excitement.

“Okay. Let me get dressed and I’ll be down.” she replied and Lucy squealed and ran from the room.

Kaitlyn didn’t move right away. She was still exhausted from her nearly sleepless night and she stared up at her smooth ceiling thinking about the dreams that had plagued her. She had never told anyone but the same dreams that often had her ma rising from bed with screams and walking to the kitchen in the middle of the night; also barely went a night without coming to Kaitlyn.

They had come last night and she had awaken sweaty and tangled up in her sheets. Memories of the way those men had touched her and violated her body. She never complained about her nightmares or talked about her time with Gilliam because she knew that Rose had had it so much worse. Rose had been there for years and years being used as a whore, Kaitlyn had only been with him for a year. And she also knew that bringing it up would only anger Marston and cause him to feel guilty( though Kaitlyn had no idea why the man felt guilty when none of it was his fault) and she didn’t want to hurt her pa; her rescuer.

Kaitlyn’s dreams hadn’t been all bad though. After she had awoken from the nightmares she had drifted back to sleep and dreamt of the mystery man at the doc’s. His fingertips had once again been stroking her face and his fevered, delirious brown eyes had been looking deep into hers. Those dreams had frightened her worse than the nightmares had. The nightmares she was used to, but these dreams and the feelings that came with them frightened her. She wanted to see the mystery man again even though she knew she shouldn’t.

She rose from her bed and wrapped her quilt around her shoulders as she made her way across the room. The fire in her small fireplace had died down in the night and her bare feet were chilled quickly on the cold hardwood floor. She pulled back her curtains and looked through her frost covered window to see that more snow had indeed fallen. Not enough to make getting to town impossible but enough to ensure that Marston would not take her to town in the cart today.

Disappointment filled her. So much for seeing her mystery man. She quickly went about getting dressed in a thick gray wool shirtwaist dress. She ran her comb through her long golden hair and pulled it back away from her face, letting it hang down her back. She stepped into her boots and then made her way downstairs.

“Good morning, Kaitlyn.” Rose said with a warm smile when Kaitlyn walked into the kitchen.

“Good morning, mama.” Kaitlyn replied, looking around the empty kitchen. “Where is everybody?”

“Marston and Langly are out feeding and Lucy is busy telling Creed all about how fun it is to play in the snow.” Kaitlyn smiled. Creed was the newest edition to the family. He was the town mutt, some form of hound, that Lucy had taken one look at and quickly insisted they had to adopt him. Rose joked that Lucy got the urge for taking in strays from her father. “He doesn’t look that impressed by what she’s telling him.” Rose added. “I think he’d much rather stay in the house and sleep by the fire.”

“I wish it hadn’t snowed.” Kaitlyn replied with a sigh as she took the finished biscuits from the oven and sat them on the table beside the fried apples, bacon and homemade gravy that Rose had already placed there. “I was hoping to go work with the doc again today.”

“So you could see your mystery man?” Rose asked with a grin and Kaitlyn shook her head quickly.

“No, of course not… Well kind of.” she admitted with a shrug. “I have never removed a bullet on my own and I would like to see how he’s doing this morning.” Kaitlyn saw the knowing smile on her mama’s face but Rose said nothing as she wiped her hands on her apron.

“Go ring the bell on the porch and let the men know breakfast is ready.” Kaitlyn nodded and left the kitchen quickly.

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“Where are you going?” Langly asked later that day when he walked in the barn and caught Kaitlyn saddling the small brown mare named Chocolate.

“I’m going to go down to the Masterson’s and check on the new baby. I already told mama.” Kaitlyn replied. Langly frowned.

“I’ll come with you.” he said matter of factly and Kaitlyn nodded. She knew better than to argue and truthfully she didn’t like traveling alone. She preferred having someone with her. She wasn’t helpless and always kept a derringer pistol in her skirt pocket but it was still nice to have someone else with you.

Langly quickly saddled a black gelding that Marston had bought for him two years before and the two of them started down the snow covered road. Their breath forming clouds in the cold winter air.

“Lucy had fun playing in the snow.” Langly said as he pulled the collar of his duster up higher around his neck. Kailtyn nodded as she smiled.

“Yes, she did. She especially had fun throwing snowballs at her big brother.” Langly laughed.

“Yet she left you alone.” he replied. “Why is that, I wonder?”

“Because I promised her I would tell her two bedtime stories tonight instead of just one if she didn’t hit me with any.” Kaitlyn replied with a mischievous grin. Langly’s eyes narrowed as he looked over at her.

“Why you sneaky little witch.” he said with a chuckle. He grabbed some snow off of a fence post beside the road and threw it at her. It bounced off her bonnet and her laughter filled the air.

“Is that the best you can do?” she teased and he grinned.

“You better run.” he warned and she quickly took off at the fastest gallop her brown mare could manage in the snow. Langly quickly overtook her and they both laughed as their horses kicked up snow and it swirled around them.

By the time they arrived at the Masterson’s they were frozen solid and their coats were damp from the spray of snow.

“The two of you look like you’re about froze completely solid.” Hanson Masterson said with a chuckle as he ushered them both into the house.

“Pretty much.” Langly replied as he rubbed his hands up and down his arms in an attempt to bring feeling back to them.

“I’ll bet I know why you’re here, Kaitlyn.” Hanson said with a proud smile and Kaitlyn nodded.

“I want to see that new baby.” she exclaimed with a smile. “I was so upset when Doctor Rankin said he delivered it without me.

“Grace was upset too but when a Masterson boy decides it’s time, that means it’s time. The doc is actually up there right now.” Hanson said and Kaitlyn nodded. She had seen the docs horse hitched outside.

“Can I go up and see her?” she asked and Hanson nodded.

“Of course you can!” he exclaimed happily. He patted her on the back and she stiffened under the contact. She couldn’t stand to be touched by any man other than her brother or pa, even when the contact was completely harmless and innocent. A memory of the strangers’ fingertips on her cheeks filled her mind but she quickly shoved it aside.

“I’ll be back down after a while.” she said and then she looked at Langly. “Are you staying down here?” she asked him. He nodded as he moved closer to the fireplace.

“Yeah, I’m going to stay right here and thaw for awhile.” Kaitlyn made her way up to the bedroom and tapped lightly on the closed door.

“Doctor Rankin, it’s Kaitlyn.” she whispered and he called for her to come in. She walked in the room and smiled when she saw Grace sitting propped up in the bed. She was beaming and her face seemed to be glowing as she held a bundled up baby in her arms.

“Oh he’s so handsome!” Kaitlyn exclaimed as she walked to the bed. “No wonder his father is downstairs looking like the proudest man in the world.”

“We tried so hard for this baby. It seems like it took forever but here he is… Our miracle.”

“And he’s perfectly healthy, as is his mother.” Doctor Rankin said with a smile as he put his tools back in his black satchel. This was why Kaitlyn longed to be a doctor. Helping to bring miracles into the world. Healing sick children. Making such a big difference to so many people.

Kaitlyn and Doctor Rankin stayed and visited with Grace and the baby for a short time but left the room when Grace began yawning. They said fairwell to Hanson and then they and Langly made their way back out into the cold.

“How is the other patient doing, Doctor Rankin?” Kaitlyn asked unable to hide the anticipation from her voice. Langly gave her an odd look but said nothing.

“He is battling a fever I’m afraid. I didn’t want to leave him today but had no choice. I’m not at all sure he is going to make it, which surprises me since I didn’t think his wounds were that bad.” Kaitlyn felt a fear she couldn’t explain grip her. She couldn’t let that man die!

“I want to come into town with you and see to him.” she said quickly.

“Kaitlyn, it’s too cold and snowy out here. You need to just come on home.” Langly argued.

“Langly, I feel like this man is my patient. I removed the bullet from his arm and I patched his wounds… I feel as if I should do all I can for him to help him recover and fight this fever.” she said matter of factly. She decided that must be all it was. It couldn’t be that she actually had any other interest in this man. She had never had an interest in any man and this man was one she definitely shouldn’t have interest in! After all, it was clear that he was dangerous by the scar on his face and the bullet wounds on his body.

“Kaitlyn…” he said uncertainly and she smiled.

“You said that you thought I would make a good doctor. Well taking care of your patients, no matter what the weather is, is part of that.” she reminded him and she saw the look of defeat in his blue eyes. If there was one thing that Langly had learned from Marston it was to give his family pretty much anything they wanted.

“Fine, but I’m coming into town too, that way I can ride home with you tonight.” Kaitlyn was bouncing with excitement as she climbed on her horse.

“Of course.” she said happily.

888

Her happiness quickly died when she walked into the patient room at the doc’s and saw the man lying in the bed. Langly hadn’t come in, instead he had headed down to the gun shop to do a little work since they were in town and Doctor Rankin had gone to the kitchen to let his wife know they were back.

Kaitlyn walked to the bed and stared down at the man. His body was covered with a sheet but his face was more pale and drawn than it had been yesterday. His brow was slick with sweat and she could see his eyes shifting and fluttering beneath their lids.

She pressed the back of her hand to his forehead and felt the heat from his fever. Instantly she went into doctor mode. She rolled up the sleeves of her dress and filled a pitcher of water from the tap on the sink. She carried it and several washrags over to the bed and then grabbed the disinfectant off the shelf. There were already clean bandages on the table by the bed so she poured some disinfectant on her hands and then pulled the sheet away from the man’s body.

This time she took more time to study him. He was lean, not overly muscular but lithe and clearly used to working hard. He had a dusting of blond hair, the same color as the stubble on his jaw, covering his chest and leading down his tight stomach to his pants. She wondered what his story was as she removed the bandage from the side of his abdomen and poured some antiseptic over the stitched wound.

The man hissed in pain and his eyes flew open as he struggled to sit up. Kaitlyn gasped with shock and quickly pushed him back down.

“Don’t do that!” she scolded. “You’ll tear your stitches!” His brown eyes looked deep into hers and she could see the glossiness in them from the fever. The man probably didn’t even realize what was going on and probably wouldn’t remember it once the fever broke and he regained full consciousness.

“Kaitlyn.” he said with a sleepy smile as he relaxed back against the bed and raised his fingertips once again to her cheeks. Kaitlyn quickly looked out the door to make sure the doc wasn’t coming and then she leaned into his touch. “You came back.”

“You have a fever.” she explained with a smile. “You shouldn’t have a fever since you weren’t hurt that badly and I cleaned your wounds well. Are you trying to die?” She had perfected a way of joking with patients who were sick, finding that often humor and light heartedness were the best forms of medicine.

“Your smile is like the sun come to earth for a day.” he whispered as his eyes tried to slip closed. Kaitlyn tried desperately not to take the words seriously but what kind of woman would not fall for poetry like that? Before she could form a response he slipped back into sleep and his hand fell off her cheek just as Doctor Rankin stepped into the room.

Doctor Rankin took one look at the way Kaitlyn was gazing at the sleeping patient and frowned. Her pa would surely skin him alive if Kaitlyn was compromised by some outlaw shot up in his office.

“It would probably be best if you were careful around that man, Kaitlyn. At least until we know more about him. For all we know he could have been shot up and left for dead because he did something bad.” Kaitlyn knew the doc was right but she hated to think that was true. After all, this man said such sweet things. Then again, that could just be the laudanum and fever talking every time he opened his mouth.

“I’m just going to try to bring his fever down.” she assured Doctor Rankin and he shook his head.

“I’ve known you a while, Kaitlyn, you’ve been working with me for a few years now and I’ve never seen you look at a patient that way.” Kaitlyn’s eyes widened with shock as she stood quickly and smoothed out her skirt.

“I can’t believe you would say something like that!” she exclaimed quietly. It wasn’t in her nature to ever yell or be loud. “I have no interest in him or any man, doctor Rankin. You know that.” Doctor Rankin nodded. He had seen Kaitlyn’s scars and he could sense the emotional ones that couldn’t be see on her flesh.

“Sorry I said anything.” he said. “I’ll leave you to your patient.” He slipped back out of the room, knowing that she was a very able doctor and not wanting to insult her by insisting that he supervise.

Kaitlyn watched him go and then turned back to the man on the bed. She redressed all his wounds and then began wiping his face with a cool wet cloth. For some reason, touching this man did not make her uneasy. She assumed that was because he was unconscious. Or maybe she was finally beginning to overcome her fear.

888

A blizzard kicked up late that afternoon and Langly came bursting into the doc’s.

“I gotta get back to the house and let ma and pa know we’re okay.” he said to Kaitlyn as she sat in the parlor sipping tea with the docs wife, Blanche. She had managed to bring the mans fever down and now he was sleeping peacefully behind the closed door to the patient room.

“Okay, I’ll get my coat.” she replied and he shook his head as he pulled off his hat and ran his hand through his red hair.

“No, you’ll have to stay in town.” he replied. Blanche laid a comforting hand on her arm.

“You can stay here with us dear. We have an extra room upstairs that hasn’t been used since our Olivia moved away.”

“Are you sure?” Kaitlyn asked uncertainly. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“You’re not imposing.” Blanche blew off her statement with a wave of her hand. “We enjoy having you here and besides, you have to keep an eye on your patient.” Kaitlyn smiled. Yes she did have to keep an eye on him. That’s what any good doctor would do.

888

“Well at least we know she’s safe.” Rose said as she and Marston sat beside the fire in their bedroom that night. Langly and Lucy had long since gone to bed. Rose could tell that something was wrong with Marston but he didn’t seem to want to tell her what it was.

“No we don’t.” he replied as he slid his knife across the sharpening rock. Rose studied her husband. The lines around his eyes were a little deeper than they had been when they had met six years ago but he was still hard, strong and dangerous in appearance. The only thing that gave away how much the man had truly changed were the laugh lines that now surrounded his mouth.

“Why do you say that?” Rose asked as the wind howled outside the windows.

“That man at the docs; her patient, I think he said something to her the other day that bothered her.”

“It must not have bothered her too badly because she wanted to go back.” Rose replied with a smile and Marston scowled.

“He could be dangerous.”

“He might not be.”

“He could be some kind of dangerous outlaw.”

“Isn’t this a case of the pot calling the kettle black?” she teased and Marston’s golden eyes narrowed as he glared at her.

“I would never hurt an innocent girl.” he growled and she nodded.

“I know that. I’m sure he won’t either.”

“She’s special.”

“You don’t’ worry every time Langly starts talking about a new girl.” she reminded him.

“That’s cuz he’s nearly a man. He can take care of himself.” Rose raised her brow.

“And Kaitlyn is a woman now and she can take care of herself as well. After all she has had you for a pa.” Rose saw Marston’s golden eyes ignite with fire as they gazed at her. Her blood heated; she knew what the look meant.

“I thought it was because she has you for a mama.” he replied gruffly as he stood from his chair and laid his knife on the table.

“Is that so?” Rose asked breathlessly and Marston nodded as he bent down and scooped her up in his arms. She laughed as he carried her to the bed.

“Since I’m a dangerous outlaw, I believe I won’t ask permission tonight.” he growled as he tossed her down on the bed and slid out of his shirt. Rose felt her blood turn to fire as she took in the sight of him. No matter how much time they spent together her attraction to him never faded.

“Well come on then, outlaw.” she said huskily as she bit her lip. She saw Marston’s careful hold on his self control slip and it excited her. Only with her, when they were alone together did he truly let himself go. He lowered himself over her and claimed her mouth in a fiery kiss that made her thoughts impossible to hold onto.

888

Kaitlyn slipped into her bed at the docs late that night, her thoughts lost on the man who was sleeping just below her. She had checked on him before coming to bed and his color had been coming back; the fever had not returned.

She wondered about the connection and pull that she felt toward the man. She didn’t understand it. She had never felt an attraction to any man before and the fact that she felt one for a man like the one that was lying downstairs made her fear for her sanity.

She curled up under the covers and gazed out at the snow filled sky. Maybe he would wake up tomorrow. Really wake up, not just come to a little in a laudanum induced daze, and she would be able to find out his name and what had happened to him. Her excitement was nearly a tangible thing as she drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Pete groaned and his jaw dropped with the realization of the amount of pain currently filling his head. If he didn't know any better, he'd say there was an entire herd of cattle up there running around.  

He realized he was somewhere a hell of a lot warmer than a frozen snowbank and he wondered exactly where that somewhere was. He took a deep breath and smelled the scent of antiseptics. That had to mean he was in a doctor's office which meant he wasn't dead.  

Pete's mind went back to the dreams he'd been having; dreams that he had thought were glimpses of heaven since he'd assumed he was no longer breathing. There had been a golden haired angel in his dreams with big green eyes and pale skin—too bad she had only been a dream.  

Soft feminine humming reached his ears and Pete frowned. That sounded an awful lot like the woman in his dreams... was he still asleep and simply didn't realize it?  

Pete opened his eyes and squinted against the light of the glowing lamp. He turned his head to the side and realized that it was indeed daylight outside but the sky was covered in angry gray clouds and the snow was pouring down.  

The humming grew louder and Pete looked toward the sound to see a woman standing at a table across the room. Her back was to him and she appeared to be folding towels. She was short and dainty. Her waist was small beneath her long-sleeved gray wool dress and her golden hair was laying in waves down her back.  

Golden hair? Pete's dream woman had had golden hair. Or had they been more than dreams? Maybe he hadn't been imagining that soft voice or those tender touches.  

Pete tried to speak but his mouth and throat were too dry and wouldn't allow him to form words. Instead he made little more than a croaking noise. At the sound, the woman turned quickly and Pete found himself completely captivated by her beauty.  

She had a heart-shaped face, a tiny upturned nose, full pink lips and big green eyes. Her skin was pale but her cheeks had a pink glow about them that gave her a look of innocence. A purely male protectiveness within him came away as he gazed at her.  

"You're awake!" she greeted brightly.  

Pete's heart did a slow roll in his chest. This was his dream woman. This was his angel. The woman who had saved his life. Pete attempted to speak once again but still couldn't do so. The woman left the room and returned moments later with a glass of water.  

 As she approached the bed, Pete saw a change come over her. She suddenly looked less happy and bright and more afraid. Why would anyone be afraid of him? He remembered the scar on his face and it felt as if a rock fell into the pit of his stomach...That explained that.  

Pete struggled to sit up a bit and he took the water from her outstretched hand. After taking several small sips, Pete glanced down at the crisp white bandage around his middle.  

"I cleaned and dressed your wounds," the angel woman said, folding her hands in front of her.  

Pete put his lips to the glass and took a long sip as he studied her. She was simply standing there and staring back at him. Her eyes were as green as emeralds and Pete knew they were the kind of eyes a man could lose himself in.  

"What's your name?" he asked. His voice was still raspy but, thanks to the water, it was at least working again.  

The woman tilted her head slightly. "Kaitlyn," she replied as if he should already know that.  

Pete thought back. Did he know that? The name was familiar.... Blurry images flashed through his mind he groaned when he remembered her telling him her name... and he was pretty sure he'd said some sappy things and made a fool of himself.  

He decided it would be safer to pretend he didn't remember anything—he could always blame his lack of memory on blood loss, fever and laudanum. "Hi, Kaitlyn. My name's Pete."  

Kaitlyn took a step back and leaned her lips curved in the smallest of smiles. "Do you remember what happened to you, Pete?"  

"What happened to me?" he asked.  

She nodded. "Yes, when you got shot."  

"Oh..." Pete sighed and sat his water glass on the small table beside him. "I was accused of cheating at poker. It was a simple misunderstanding but the man and his friends didn't believe me. I blame the dealer, really."  

Her green eyes widened. "You were shot over a card game?"  

"Well, first I was roughed up a little. Then they dragged me out to the middle of nowhere, stole my horse and supplies and put two rounds in me before leaving me for dead." Pete plucked at the blanket covering his legs. "All because that lousy dealer had to deal me three aces."  

"Perhaps instead of blaming the dealer, you should simply stop playing poker."  

Pete stared at her with a mixture of shock and confusion. Had she just put him in his place? Hell, her voice was so sweet and soft that he couldn't be sure if she'd said the words innocently or if she'd been telling him off. Instead of replying, Pete simply shrugged.  

"I'm sure you're hungry," Kaitlyn noted, stepping toward the door. "I'll get you some soup from the kitchen"  

Before Pete could reply, she slipped from the room.  

He gazed out the window and thought about his desire for love... Kaitlyn was a beautiful woman. He snorted. He was wasting his time even thinking thoughts like those.  

Chances are Kaitlyn was already spoken for and, even if she wasn't, a woman as soft and beautiful as her wouldn't waste her time on a scarred up nobody with nothing to offer her.  

If Pete was rich, he figured women could overlook the scar. If he was handsome, they could probably overlook the fact that he wasn't rich. But since the Lord has seen fit to curse Pete with both ugliness and poverty, his chances were quite slim that he'd ever find a woman worth settling down with.  

Pete still wanted to do 

something to impress Kaitlyn. Perhaps if he made himself halfway presentable before she returned, he would earn himself at least a smile from the woman.

Pete tossed his legs over the edge of the bed and attempted to stand, falling back on the mattress and cursing with pain when his legs gave out beneath him.  

Damn that no good Skinner and that dealer with three aces!

Pete grabbed onto the bedpost and used it to support himself as he once again stood. He allowed his legs several moments to adjust to his weight before using the wall and other furniture to aide him in his trek to the sink.  

The mirror above it showed Pete that he did indeed look like hell and he quickly looked away.  

He hated the sight of that scar.  

It was long and puckered and it pulled at the skin around it. He despised the thing. He honestly wished those other deputies had simply shot and killed him rather than scar him for life and see to it that no woman would ever love him and no child would ever trust him.  

A turn of the faucet showed that the water was frozen and so Pete poured a bit of water from a pitcher into the wash basin and cleaned his face. He ran his hand through his hair several times in an attempt to fix the tangle but it didn't do much good.  

Pete sniffed himself and paled. Dear Lord, he smelled like the backside of a hog! He shuffled to the white cabinet, using everything he could reach for support, and opened the glass door. There were lots of vials of liquids inside and Pete figured that at least one of them had to smell better than he currently smelled.  

He opened one at a time and began sniffing them. There was one vial that made his eyes water, one that caused his head to spin and one that made his stomach roll. He was losing hope that he'd find anything when Pete opened another vial and the scent of witch hazel filled his nose.  

He smiled. It was the little victories that made life worth living.  

He poured a bit on his hand and quickly rubbed it on his neck, under his arms and on his pants. He felt his body weakening from the exertion of the last few minutes and as he fumbled to replace the cork, the bottle slipped from his hands and shattered upon the floor.  

The scent of witch hazel instantly filled the entire room. It clogged his nostrils and caused him to cough. It was overpowering and overwhelming and Pete cursed himself a fool.  

"What happened?" Kaitlyn's soft voice came from the doorway.  

Pete turned to see her standing there with a bowl of soup in one hand and holding her nose with the other. "I uh..." Pete rubbed furiously at the back of his neck. "It fell off the shelf...all on its own."  

A narrowing of Kaitlyn's eyes proved she didn't believe him but she was apparently too much of a lady to call him on it. Instead she sat the soup bowl down on the table and went to the window, lifting it and allowing a rush of frigid air and snow to blast into the room.  The cold took Pete's breath as it washed over his bare torso.  

"You shouldn't be out of bed," Kaitlyn noted. "Let's get you to the parlor where you can sit and rest while the room airs out."  

Kaitlyn grabbed up the soup bowl and held out her arm. "Do you need help to walk out there?"  

Pete shook his head quickly. He didn't want her to think he was weak and helpless...and he wasn't wearing a shirt. He was certain he saw relief in her eyes at his refusal and it caused his chest to hurt a bit.  

Kaitlyn sat down in a cushioned chair beside the fire and motioned to the twin chair beside her. Pete was more than happy to take a seat, gingerly adjusting himself to take pressure off his side.  

The fire was a welcome warmth to his chilled skin. Pete glanced over at her and realized that she was watching him. He became trapped in her green eye. A hundred different emotions battled in Pete's chest. Fear, hope, longing... never had Pete felt such a pull to a woman.  

Suddenly she blinked, breaking the contact, and shoved the bowl of soup into his chest. "Here you go," she said, much too loudly.  

Pete wondered why she was flustered and hoped that was a good sign. Maybe he could stand a chance with her. "So, are you a doctor?" he asked, before sipping a bit of soup from his spoon.  

"Not really," Kaitlyn shrugged. "I'd love to be but most folks don't want a woman doctor." She folded her hands in her lap and stared into the dancing flames. "I've been helping the doc here in town for a few years."  

"I think you'd make a fine doctor," Pete assured her. He was attempting to give his roaring stomach another spoonful of soup, when his shaking hand caused him to spill the hot spoonful down his bare chest.  

Pete cursed and swiped at it and damned himself for being an embarrassing fool in front of a pretty woman. He glanced over at Kaitlyn to see just how badly she was laughing at him, but instead found that she was smiling comfortingly. She pulled a dainty, white handkerchief from her pocket and held it out to him.  

"You might be a little shaky from the laudanum," Kaitlyn stated softly. "And you're probably still quite weak from blood loss."  

"Yeah, that's probably it," Pete was quick to agree as he mopped up the soup on his chest and sat the soiled handkerchief on the small table between their chairs.  

Pete had been worried that Kaitlyn would laugh at his awkwardness but instead it seemed to help her relax a bit in her chair. "You seem like a nice man, Pete," she mused as she picked at her skirt and stared down at her hands. "It's hard to believe that anyone would shoot you simply over a card game."  

Pete shrugged. "There might have been some whiskey involved."  

He put the bowl to his lips, deciding that drinking the soup down would be easier than attempting to use that spoon with his shaking hands. Kaitlyn looked his way, their eyes met and Pete found himself choking on the soup he'd been attempting to swallow.  

Kaitlyn was out of her chair in an instant and dashed to him, patting his back gently. "Are you okay?" she asked, once his painful coughing had subsided.  

Pete laid his hand over the aching wound on his side but the pain was barely noticeable over the flames that were shooting through his body with her small hand resting against the bare skin of his back.  

"Yeah..uh..I'm fine." Was the only response he could come up with. Damn but he was fool! What he needed was whiskey. A little liquid courage in his blood would have him feeling much more up to sweeping Kaitlyn off her feet.  

"What is he doing out of bed?" a man, Pete assumed must be Doctor Rankin, demanded as he stepped into the sitting room.  

The doctor was a short man, probably only five and a half feet tall and his hair was nearly completely gray. His mustache had a few hairs that were too long and fell over the disapproving line that were his lips.  

"There was an accident in his room," Kaitlyn was quick to reply and even quicker to step away from Pete and remove her hand from his skin. "Some witch hazel spilled and the smell was too strong so I brought him out here while the room airs out."  

"How did witch hazel spill?" Doctor Rankin questioned, his gaze returning to Pete.  

Pete stood very slowly, hating that the pain in his side kept him from moving more quickly. "I spilled it," he admitted. "I wanted to clean my face and I knocked it over on my way back to the bed."  

"Uh-huh." Doctor Rankin eyed them both. "Kaitlyn, Blanche could use your help in the kitchen."  

Kaitlyn nodded and left the sitting room in a hurry. Pete felt his temper flare a bit. He'd been enjoying spending time with Kaitlyn and didn't see why this doctor felt he had the right to order her around.  

"I don't know much about you," Doctor Rankin said, crossing his arms over his narrow chest. "What is your name?"  

Pete stood straight and squared his shoulders. Pretty women might make him a nervous wreck but he wasn't intimidated quite so easily by old men. "My name is Pete, sir."  

Doctor Rankin nodded. "Well, Pete, I don't know anything about you other than your name and the fact that you were found shot up, moneyless, horseless and nearly dead. If I had to guess I'd say you're the dangerous sort."  

Pete nearly snorted. Dangerous? He'd been called a lot of things—worthless, ignorant, hideous—but never dangerous.  

"I wasn't horseless or moneyless until I had my things stolen, sir, and that's about the same time I found myself shot up as well. And I can't see how any of that is any of your business."  

Doctor Rankin's eyes narrowed and he stepped closer, pointing his finger at Pete's chest. "It's my business because that is a sweet and innocent young lady you're attempting to woo and her pa entrusted me with her care.  The blizzard we're currently having means we'll all be cooped up here together for a few days but mark my words, son, if I notice you acted inappropriately toward that girl, I'll toss you out in the snow myself."  

Pete wanted to tell the good doctor to go straight to hell and shove his judgmental opinions up his ass, and he nearly did, but then he thought better of it. If he played his cards just right and acted like he would heed the doctor's warning, Pete could have a few days here to get to know Kaitlyn.  

"Yes sir," he replied, with a tip of his head.  

Doctor Rankin sighed. "Come on and let's get you back to your room. You shouldn't be up and moving around just yet, you'll tear your stitches." Doctor Rankin turned away but then looked back at Pete. "And quit using my good witch hazel to try to make yourself smell good for that girl.. she's not the type to fall for a man's tricks."

Pete sent a look of longing down the hall that Kaitlyn had disappeared down before following slowly after the doctor.  

---

Kaitlyn's thoughts were racing as she stood in the kitchen, helping Blanche prepare supper. They were thoroughly distracted by her patient. Pete's eyes were different than she had thought they'd be. When they weren't glossy with laudanum they were warm and kind.  

He had a nice smile and his dimple was quite charming—though she had to admit, though she'd never say so aloud, that the right side of his face was quite alarming. The scar was frightening and would certainly take getting used to.  

Not that Kaitlyn was interested in getting used to it or would have time if she did want to. The man was only here until he healed and then he'd be back to whatever life he was living before that had led to him being shot and left for dead.  Then again, he had acted awfully taken with her...

Kaitlyn remembered the gazes he had sent her way and she swallowed hard. She had felt something stir within her when their eyes had meant. She'd felt a heat and a longing that she had never felt before in her life. She had seen those emotions in her ma and pa's eyes as they'd gazed at one another but never had Kaitlyn imagined she would feel those things herself.  

Pete was entirely different than Kaitlyn had thought he would be. Given his injuries and his scar, Kaitlyn had been expecting a cold, callous perhaps even mean man but instead Pete was kind, shy and, honestly, a bit silly.  

Kaitlyn smiled when she recalled the embarrassment on his face when he'd been caught standing over the shattered vial of witch hazel. He had an awkwardness about him that took away a very good deal of that fear she had always before felt around men.  

"Well aren't you all smiles this afternoon," Blanche noted with a grin as she wiped her hands on her apron.  

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Kaitlyn lied as she pulled the bread from the oven.  

Blanche clicked her tongue. "So, did your patient like his soup?"  

"Pete."  

Blanche smiled. "Oh, of course. Did 

Pete like his soup?“

A bright blush colored Kaitlyn's cheeks before working its way down her neck. "Yes," she squeaked.  

Blanche patted her hand comfortingly. "Don't be embarrassed, dear. I was young once." The older woman's eyes took on a faraway look. "Yes, I was just about your age when I met Hank."  

"I'm not looking for a husband," Kaitlyn quickly countered. "I would never make a good wife," she added quietly. Being a wife meant certain nighttime duties were expected and Kaitlyn doubted she would ever feel safe enough or trust anyone enough to give them that.  

Blanche's smile was warm and comforting. "Dear, one day a man will come along and he'll make you begin to forget all the pain you've gone through. He'll be patient and kind and he'll love you enough to wait for you no matter how long it takes—even if you're never able to do all 

you think you should.“

Tears filled Kaitlyn's eyes and Blanche hugged her tightly. The doctor and his wife were the only people in town who knew about Kaitlyn's past other than her family.  

"Do you really think so?" she whispered against Blanche's shoulder.  

The woman pulled away and dabbed at Kaitlyn's eyes with the edge of her apron. "I know so."

As the two women went back to cooking supper, Kaitlyn had to wonder if perhaps she'd already met that man. Thoughts of Pete's smile and his warm brown eyes had Kaitlyn sighting wistfully.

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

That night after Kaitlyn finished cleaning the kitchen, she made her way to Pete’s room to check on him. Doctor Rankin had claimed he was too weak to join them for supper and Kaitlyn was worried that perhaps his fever might be returning.

The doctor and Blanche had already retired for the night. They had always been the early to bed, early to rise types. The house was quiet but the wind was howling outside and the snow was still falling heavily.  

Kaitlyn tapped lightly on the patient room door before entering and she nearly laughed when she realized the room still smelled very strongly of witch hazel.  

Pete was lying on the bed on top of the covers. He had his hands folded behind his head and his ankles were crossed. The doctor had found him a white cotton shirt that was far too large and it contrasted sharply with the suntanned glow of his skin.  

His gaze turned to her when she entered the room and she was surprised by the smile that brightened his features. "Hi Kaitlyn." Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of that dimple.  

"How are you feeling?" Kaitlyn asked, walking to the bed and folding her hands in front of her.  

Pete grunted with pain as he pushed himself into more of a sitting position. "A little sore." He shrugged. "Other than that I'm okay."  

"Would you like some laudanum to help with the pain and allow you to rest?"  

"No," Pete replied quickly. "I'm tired of feeling cloudy. Maybe we could..." He paused and Kaitlyn waited patiently for him to speak. "Maybe we could talk awhile?"

Kaitlyn bit her lip and glanced toward the door. The doctor would be very cross if he caught her down here socializing with Pete. The doctor wasn't convinced that Pete didn't pose a threat but Kaitlyn seriously doubted that Pete was a danger to her in any way.  

She smiled. "That sounds nice." Kaitlyn took a seat in the chair next to his bed and smoothed out her skirt.  

Pete rubbed at his neck. "So, do you have any family, Kaitlyn?" And he cursed himself instantly for asking such a bland question. With all his stuttering, stammering and awkwardness he was about as smooth as a washboard.  

"Yes, I live with my mama and my pa a few miles outside of town. I have a brother who is about a year younger than me and a five year old sister."  

"You don't sound like you're from around here," Pete noted. Her accent was similar to his but far different from most northern accents.  

Kaitlyn tipped her head. "Neither do you," she replied. Then she smiled. "My family moved here from Louisiana."  

"I grew up in Louisiana!" Pete said, happy to have found something they had in common. "What's your mama and pa's names? Maybe I know them."  

Her gaze shifted to the frost covered window and she shifted in the chair before shaking her head. "No, I don't think you know them... Their names are Rose and Jacob."  

Pete wondered why she was suddenly acting so fidgety. "Do you have a last name?"  

Kaitlyn nodded. "Of course. Marston."  

Pete's eyes narrowed. Marston? Jacob Marston? That was awful similar to the name of a big bastard who had helped send Pete's life into a downward spiral. But surely it couldn't be. The name was 

too similar. Marston wouldn’t be that stupid and God wouldn’t so cruel as to send Pete the man’s daughter.

"What about you?" Kaitlyn urged. "What's your last name?"  

Pete shook off his wandering thoughts. "Mears," he replied. "No family though. I was an only child and my folks passed away a few years ago."  

"I'm sorry," Kaitlyn offered and Pete could tell that she meant it.  

He offered her a gentle smile. "Things happen."  

They sat there in silence for a long while. Pete wished like hell he could come up with something else to say but all he could do was simply sit and stare at her.  

Kaitlyn finally broke the silence as she stood. "You should be getting some rest, Pete. I'm tired as well and going to go to bed. Are you certain you don't want a bit of laudanum?"

Pete slowly put his legs over the edge of his bed and grunted as he pushed himself to his feet. Instantly, Kaitlyn's eyes lit with fear and she took a quick step backward. Pete couldn't help but wonder why she was so skittish. He wasn't a violent man by nature but if someone had hurt this angel of a woman, Pete would see that they paid for it.

"Why are you afraid of me?" he found himself asking. Then, before his could stop himself, his mouth continued to speak. "Has someone hurt you before, Kaitlyn? I'd be more than happy to punch them... or maybe I'd just shoot them because I never was much in a fight. Then again, I never have been real fast with a gun. Maybe I could just give them a dirty look and run away.. I've always been a real fast runner."  

Pete had been hoping to ease her fear and bring a smile to her face but instead he realized he'd only managed to make himself sound like an even bigger idiot. Damn, but the woman sent his brain on a one way trip to idiocy!

Pete decided that maybe that wasn't such a bad thing, however, when Kaitlyn's green eyes lit with amusement and she covered her mouth with her hand and laughed lightly.  

"That won't be necessary," she assured him. "I have a pa who is more than capable of defending me."  

"But I would too," Pete quickly replied. "I would defend you if you needed me to."  

Kaitlyn frowned. "You don't even know me." Her voice sounded sad.  

Pete knew an opportunity when he saw one. "I could get to know you." He stepped forward but Kaitlyn countered the motion by stepped back.  

"I really do have to be getting to bed," she said. "Is there anything I can get for you before I go?"  

"A goodnight kiss?"  

Pete clamped his hand over his mouth and closed his eyes when he realized he had just said those words out loud. Great. Earlier his mouth had refused to work and now it wouldn't stop!  

He opened one eye just a crack and saw her staring at him with wide, fearful eyes. Every ounce of color had drained from her face. Kaitlyn took several steps back until she was standing in the doorway.  

"I can't..." she whispered. "I'm not.. I'm not interested."  

Pete felt as if he'd been punched in the gut. So much for hope. He deflated instantly and his shoulders drooped. His every ache and pain suddenly intensified and Pete dropped himself back down onto the bed.  

"Fair enough," he grumbled before laying down and draping his arm over the right side of his face and the scar that would haunt him forever.  

 "I'll.. I'll check on you in the morning," Kaitlyn's voice was quiet and sad.  

Pete didn't glance her way. "Yep. I'll be here." It's not like he could go anywhere in the middle of a blizzard with no money and no horse.  

"Pete, it's not you." Her pretty green eyes met his brown ones. "I've been hurt...in the past." Kaitlyn shivered. "And I.. I just can't.."  

Pete felt that hope for a future blossom once again in his chest. So, it wasn't his scar or anything else about him that was keeping her from trusting him—it had something to do with her past. Luckily, Pete had plenty of patience, lots of time and nothing better to do with either than earn her trust.  

He smiled and his heart ached when she gave him a shaky smile in return. "Goodnight Kaitlyn."  

"Goodnight, Pete."  

Pete watched her go before turning his gaze to the ceiling above him. "Thank you for shooting me, Skinner." Little had Pete known when those bullets had slammed into him that they'd end up being the best thing to ever happen to him.  

---

"I wish this snow would stop," Marston grumbled as he stared out the window at the snow filled sky.  

Rose got up from her chair and walked to the bed. She laid down on her stomach across it and propped her chin in her hands. "I like the snow."  

Marston sighed and when he turned to look at her, Rose could feel his eyes wash over her body, lingering on her backside. "I'm just worried about Kaitlyn," he replied, pulling off his gun belt.  

"Kaitlyn is fine, Marston," she assured him for the hundredth time.  

"What if that man.....?"

Rose cut him off with a glare. "I'm sure he's a perfectly nice man."  

"He was shot," Marston grumbled. "He must not have been nice to someone."  

"Maybe he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time," Rose offered.  

"Maybe he was robbing a bank."  

"Or maybe be was attempting to steal his brother's horse."  

Rose saw the corners of Marston's mouth twitch. "I'm glad you find my suffering to be funny." Marston stalked to the bed and sat down beside her.  

Rose rolled onto her side and laid her hand gently against his arm. "She's growing up, Marston. One day she is going to meet a man and fall in love. She's going to want to marry him and you'll have to let her go."  

Marston closed his eyes and shivered. Rose laughed. "You'll be just fine, Marston. But, in the meantime, I there anyway I could talk my handsome, attractive, strong, brave, devilishly charming outlaw of a husband to give me a backrub?"  

Rose saw that hungry glint in his eye that always made her tremble with anticipation. He raised his brow. "A backrub?"

"Yes." She winked. "Just a backrub."  

"Oh, it's going to be more than a backrub," he vowed as he flipped her onto her stomach and straddled her legs. His big hands began kneading her sore muscles and Rose purred with pleasure.

Her massage was cut short when Lucy's terrified voice filled the air. "Pa! Pa, help me!"  

Marston was off the bed, snatching up his gun and out of the room as fast as a bullet left a gun. He burst into his daughter's room with his gun in his hand. She was sitting up in bed and clutching the tiny doll that Marston had given to her just after she'd been born.  

His eyes scanned the room but he saw nothing that should have frightened her. "What's wrong, Lucy?" Marston asked, sticking his gun in the waistband of his pants and walking to her bed.  

Her blue eyes widened as she pointed at his gun. "Keep it out, pa. You have to shoot the monster."  

Marston frowned. "What monster, princess?" 	

"The one under my bed."  

Marston felt foolish for being so concerned that it could be anything else. Old habits died, he supposed. He was always waiting for his past to catch up to him and had to remind himself daily that Marston Jacob's was a dead man in the eyes of the rest of the world.  

Marston heard Rose walk to the doorway and he turned to her with a smile. "Monsters under the bed," he informed her as he handed her his gun.  

She rose on her toes and kissed his jaw. "Go get 'em, pa."  

"I'll be back soon to finish that backrub," he promised.  

Rose disappeared back down the hall. Marston turned back to his youngest daughter and puffed out his chest. "Alright, Lucy, I think it's about time that little monster meets your big bad pa."  

His heart swelled when he heard her happy giggle.  

---

Vincent Sharp stood on the porch of his cabin and stood beneath the glow of lantern light. He breathed in the dry desert air. His doctor's had let him know that his only hope at prolonging his life was to move somewhere dry and arid. Unfortunately, Vincent was beginning to realize that even that wasn't going to prolong his life for very long.  

Damn that Marston Jacobs to the fiery pits of hell. The only thing that gave Vincent any solace in his current condition was knowing that he had been the one to bring about the law taking that bastard and stringing him up by his neck.  

The bullet that Marston had sent into his chest over five years ago hadn't killed him instantly but it had done significant damage to his lung and, quite soon, that lung would cease to function altogether. The doctor's claimed he could give up smoking and live a short time longer but Vincent figured if he was going to die either way, he might as well enjoy his cigarettes.  

He took a deep draw off his cigarette, just for spite, and his ears perked when he heard a rider coming in the dark. He laid his free hand on his revolver. "Who's out there?"  his raspy voice demanded.  

"It's your brother so don't shoot me," came Frank's reply. Vincent instantly relaxed and smiled as Frank rode into the glow of lantern light. He dismounted his horse and returned Vincent's smile. "How you doing, Vince?"

"Dying Frank," Vincent replied wryly. "How about you?"  

Frank shrugged and took the cigarette from Vincent's hand. He stole a puff and blew it out slowly. "I actually have some news for you, Vince. News that I wasn't sure I was going to tell you about."  

Vincent took another cigarette from his chest pocket. "What kind of news?"  

"Sit down, Vince," Frank urged.  

Vincent frowned as he went to the rocking chair his brother had hand crafted for him and took a seat. "What the hell's going on?"  

"Now, I want you to stay calm and don't get too tore up...."  

"I'm getting pissed at your beating around the bush," Vincent warned. "Just tell me what you came to tell me."  

Frank kicked at the boards beneath his feet. "It's about Marston Jacobs."  

Vincent's eyes narrowed as he stared hard at his brother. Frank knew damn well that name wasn't allowed to be spoken in his presence. The silence stretched on for several long seconds and other than the hoot of an owl in the distance, the only sound was Vincent's wheezing breath.

"What about him?" Vincent hissed.  

Frank shifted his feet and tugged on his sleeve. "Well I heard some things."  

Vincent slammed his hands down on the arms of the rocking chair, sending cigarette ashes scattering in the dry breeze. "You better spit out whatever it is you heard!"  

"I heard from a man in Millerton that Marston Jacob's ain't the man buried in that grave."  

Vincent snorted. "That's absurd."  

"Not really. Boyd Cunningham was in Millerton when they buried who they said was Marston and he said it wasn't Marston's body."  

Vincent swallowed hard. His breathing quickened and his lung burned. He tried to clear his chest and that led to a coughing fit that had him wheezing and fighting to catch a breath.  

When finally he could draw in a breath and his head stopped spinning, Vincent said, "Didn't Boyd and Marston ride together with Duke for awhile?"

Frank nodded. "Yeah, they did. Apparently Boyd went to say his goodbye's to the body and he said that something just didn't look right."  

Vincent's foot bounced as he rolled his eyes. "Well hell, the man had been tortured by that Marshall from what I heard and then he was hanged and trampled by quite a few stampeding cattle. Of course something didn't look right."  

"Well, Boyd seemed to think it was something more than that and he'd spent quite a bit of time around Marston." Frank paused but at the sight of Vincent's impatient stare, he quickly continued. "He said there was no way it was Marston because... well, he opened the man's eyes and they were blue."  

Vincent's jaw popped. "But Marston's eyes were gold."  

"Exactly."  

"That goddamned son of a bitch is out there still alive and I'm sitting here wasting away and waiting to die?!" Vincent demanded as he shoved himself to his feet and began pacing the porch.  

"Calm down, Vince. You'll cause yourself to have another episode."  

Vincent stopped and stuck his finger in his younger brother's face. "Where is Marston?"  

Frank swallowed hard. "I don't know."  

Vincent grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled his face down so they were even. "Find him. Take as many men as you need. Search high and low. I want him to pay for what he did to me. I want him to lose everything he loves and then I want to watch him die before I breathe my last breath."

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

The blizzard was still raging outside the following day but that didn’t stop quite a few patients from making their way to the doc’s. One man broke his leg when he slipped and fell off his porch and another man came to collect medicine for his children who were developing coughs. There was a woman who came in complaining of stomach pain which Kaitlyn finally diagnosed as being the result of eating meat that hadn’t been cured properly.

Those were just a few of the patience she spent her day tending to and between doing that and helping Blanch with the cooking and cleaning, she was exhausted that night when she finally collapsed in the sitting room chair.  

With all the people that had stopped by today, Kaitlyn was surprised that her pa hadn't been one of them. She knew he had to be worried sick about her because the man very rarely let any of them out of his sight for long. Kaitlyn suspected it had been her mama who had kept her pa at bay and she was grateful that the woman always seemed to know what Kaitlyn wanted—and what she wanted was more time to get to know Pete and work through her feelings for him. Her pa certainly wouldn't give her the time or space to do either if he showed up.  

She hadn't even had time to speak to Pete much today other than to quickly change his bandages and check his wound which were both healing fine. She wanted to talk to him though she knew it was fair of her to want that... she knew that Pete wanted more from her than she would ever be able to give him, or any other man for that matter.  

Kaitlyn sighed. She couldn't simply ignore the man. She had to at least speak with him. If she didn't, it would hurt his feelings and Kaitlyn certainly did not want to hurt Pete.  

The chair was comfortable and her feet and legs were aching so Kaitlyn decided that she'd rest a few moments before checking on Pete once more before bed.  

Before she had time to realize she was going to fall asleep, Kaitlyn's light snores were filling the sitting room.  

---

Pete paced the room, growing more and more impatient by the second. He hadn't spoken two words to Kaitlyn all day and those had been that morning. He'd caught glimpses of her as she had bustled around and tended to patients and Pete had been amazed at just how good she dealt with them all.  

He had been in awe, quite simply. He wondered what made her want to be a doctor—it wasn't a profession chosen by many women. He wanted to know what had happened in her past to make her so afraid. Hell he wanted to know her favorite color and whether she liked summer or winter the most.  

It had taken quite a bit of will power on his part, to keep from cornering her throughout the day and forcing her to talk to him. The only thing that had truly stopped him was the doctor who had stayed glued to her side. The old man was dead set against allowing Pete to spend any time at all with Kaitlyn.  

Pete had hoped that maybe she would come see him once the doctor and his wife went to bed but they'd gone up a while ago and he was still alone. Pete figured he'd probably ruined any chance he had with Kaitlyn when he blurted out that nonsense about kissing the night before.  

It wasn't his fault he'd been born with a faulty brain to mouth filter, at least that' what his mama had always accused him of having. His pa had said that it was Pete's brain that was simply broken. Hell, Pete was beginning to believe the man was right.  

He had finally met a beautiful woman who didn't seem too bothered by his face and instead of charming her, he'd fumbled, mumbled and stuttered. He'd managed to spill witch hazel all over the floor and stink the place up like a brothel, admit to the woman he wasn't much good in a fight and asked her to kiss him when he didn't know anything about her other than the fact that she had a brother and sister!

What the hell was his problem?

Pete kicked at the floorboards, not realizing in his fit of frustration that they were uneven, and he was sent flying forward when he tripped. His arms flapped like a pair of windmills but luckily he caught himself when his face bounced off the wall.  

Pete groaned and simply remained there, his face pressed against the wall. His side hurt, his arm ached and now he had a damn busted nose. He prayed it wasn't broken. The last thing he needed to go with his scarred up face was a crooked nose.  

He pushed himself away from the wall stiffly and rubbed at his throbbing face. A noise came from the sitting room just outside his door and Pete put his ear to the door and listened close.  

It came again and Pete realized it was the sound of someone lightly snoring. Knowing it had to be Kaitlyn and unable to fight the urge to see what the angel would look like when she was sleeping, Pete opened the door and stepped into the sitting room.  

Silently he circled her chair and gazed down at her peaceful face. She appeared so innocent, fragile and pure sitting there. It surprised Pete that in her presence, he felt more like a man. He felt as if he could protect and shelter her and he knew he wanted to do those things as well. He felt as if he could make a difference in her life and it had been a very, very long time since Pete had felt like he could make a difference in anything.  

Pete wanted to talk to her, but he didn't want to force her away when she was sleeping so peacefully. His shoulders drooped as he decided to simply wait until tomorrow to hear her voice.  

He took one step away from her and she moaned. With a raise of his brow, Pete moved back and stared at her, wondering what she was dreaming that had her moaning... maybe it was dreams of him. But then she let out another moan and her head thrashed to the side and Pete realized those were moans of fear, not pleasure.  

"No...." she whispered, her voice laced with fear. "No, don't..."  

Kaitlyn's breathing became labored and she began to gasp as if someone were crushing her. Her face pulled back into a grimace as she fought against an attacker that only she could see.  

Pete wasn't sure what to do. She seemed to be deep in the nightmare and he didn't know if the same ruled applied to that as to sleepwalkers. He'd always heard you shouldn't wake them up.  

Sweat covered her brow, she gagged and then a tear slid down her cheek. Pete quickly stepped forward, crouched down to her level and shook her shoulder gently. "Kaitlyn, honey, wake up. You're having a nightmare."  

Her eyes opened wide. They were bright with panic. She let out a yelp and Pete was caught off guard when she kicked her leg and caught him directly where Skinny had placed a bullet not too many days before.  

Pete grunted with pain as he went sprawling backward. His head connected sharply with the floor. Pete chose to simply lay there, deciding that any movement would only worsen the pain radiating through nearly every inch of his body. His side felt as if it had been torn back apart and his head was pounding so badly, he squeezed his eyes shut tight against the pain.  

"Oh no! Pete!" Kaitlyn exclaimed with horror.  

The pain seemed to fade somehow when Pete became all 

too aware of her gentle hands skimming over his arms and then raising the bottom of his shirt. She gasped. “Pete.. I’m so sorry!”

He could hear tears in her eyes so he cracked his open and glanced down to see that he was bleeding once again. Pete forced a smile that he was certain closer resembled a grimace and painfully rose up on his elbows. "It's okay. It doesn't really hurt."  

Kaitlyn sniffed. "Of course it does!" Pete didn't the like the way those tears looked streaking down her face. "I've never hurt anyone! I'm sure you must hate me now."

Pete reached out with his wounded arm and slid his thumb across her cheek to smooth away the tears. "I don't think I could ever hate you, Kaitlyn." She tensed at the intimate contact and Pete saw the green in her eyes darken. He swallowed hard. "That must have been some nightmare."  

Kaitlyn pulled away and held out her hand to help Pete to his feet. He grunted with the effort it took to stand, wincing with pain. "No, not really," Kaitlyn lied as she used her body to help support him and lead him back to his bed.  

Pete laid down on the bed and pressed his fingers into his temples in an attempt to ease the pain. He watched Kaitlyn gather up supplies and avoid his gaze. The woman was lying. The dream had sounded damn bad to him—it had sounded like someone had been forcing her. Why would a woman dream such a thing unless it had happened to her?

No, Pete refused to believe that. Kaitlyn was far too innocent and pure. Surely a woman who had been forced would have lost that.  

"It sounded bad to me," he insisted.  

"It really wasn't," Kaitlyn insisted. "I'm sorry I worried you," she added as she deposited her armful of disinfectant, bandages and needle and thread on the table beside the bed.  

"I'm sorry I hurt you, Pete," she added, raising his shirt and looking at his wound.  

"It's okay." He hissed when she poured a bit of disinfectant on him. "Next time I wake you up, I'll find a good long stick to do it with."  

Pete swelled with pride when her soft, beautiful laughter filled the room.... That pride was quickly forgotten when she began to add new stitches his torn side.  

"Do you want some laudanum?" she offered. "Or some whiskey? I think the doc may have some in the kitchen."  

"No," Pete grunted, though he was damn tempted to say yes to the whiskey. "Just do what you gotta do, Kaitlyn, but try to do it fast."  

Kaitlyn nodded and Pete focused his attention on her to help block out the pain. She was chewing her bottom lip and her brow was creased with concentration. Pete noticed that a few strands of her golden hair had fallen in front of her eyes so he reached up and gently smoothed them behind her ear.  

Kaitlyn's eyes lifted to his a moment and he saw the longing in them before she quickly turned her attention back to her work. As far as Pete was concerned the job was done far too quickly and soon Kaitlyn was up picking up the mess and preparing to leave the room.  

He was fairly sure that she was hesitating as if searching for a reason to stay but that could have simply been wishful thinking on his part. "I really am sorry I hurt you, Pete," she said again as she stood beside the door.  

Pete waved off her concern as he pushed himself into a sitting position and leaned against the wall. "I told you not to worry about it. I'm tougher than I look."  

Kaitlyn tilted her head as she looked at him and Pete wished he knew what was going on in her pretty head. "Is there anything I can get for you before I go to bed?" she asked. "Maybe some laudanum so you can sleep?"  

"Naw," Pete shrugged. "I'll be alright."  

"Okay then," Kaitlyn sighed. "Goodnight."  

She turned to leave the room and Pete felt desperation fill him. He knew that it was time either man up or shut up and Pete had never been real good at shutting up. Of course the last few years he hadn't been real good at manning up either, but that was about to change.  

"Do you know how to play poker?" he blurted.  

Kaitlyn turned to face him with a frown on her face. "Poker?"  

"Yeah. You know, it's a card game where you...."  

"I know what poker is," she promised.  

Pete shrugged. "Well I'm not tired and you don't seem all that tired. Why don't we play some poker?"  

Kaitlyn's eyes were conflicted and Pete wished he could hear whatever internal battle she was fighting with herself. He was about to ask what she was thinking, when she suddenly smiled softly. "Sure," she replied. "Sure, I'll play cards with you. I know where the doc keeps some. I'll be right back."  

Pete watched her leave and she returned moments later with a deck of red-backed cards. "You do know how to play, don't you?" he asked.  

Kaitlyn simply smiled as she pulled the chair closer to the bed and sat down. Pete watched in awe as the angelic woman shuffled those cards with more flair than just about any dealer he'd ever seen.

"I was in an orphanage until I was ten," she said, noticing his shocked expression. "I learned all kind of things in that place."  

Pete smiled. Was the woman finally opening up to him? "You were adopted?" he asked. "Your family isn't your blood family?"  

Kaitlyn's eyes narrowed and her voice held an edge of anger. "They're the only family I've ever known."  

"Right..." Pete rubbed at his neck as she began to deal. "I didn't mean it the way it came out."  

Kaitlyn simply shrugged. "Let's play poker. You must be awfully good at the game if someone shot you over it."  

Pete laughed. "Either that or I'm a real bad cheat."  

She studied him closely. "Are you a cheat?"  

"No," he assured her.  

A smiled graced her face. "I didn't think so. Now let's play."  

They played cards late into the night. They talked, laughed and learned all the little things about one another. When Kaitlyn had started yawning, Pete had known it was time to call it a night. He had bid her goodnight before taking her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.  

She had whispered a soft goodnight before leaving the room. If any part of Pete had been unsure about whether or not he was in love with Kaitlyn, it was no longer on the fence. She seemed just about perfect—and now he knew more about her. Her favorite season was spring, her favorite color was blue and she wanted to be a doctor so she could make a difference. And she loved her family. Hearing her talk about them had Pete missing his own.  

As he lay down in the dark and stared at the ceiling, he heard her footsteps above him. He imagined her laying her bed alone and felt his desire stir. Pete threw his arms over his face and growled in frustration. He had been a long time without a woman and now there was a beautiful, soft woman he loved sleeping right above him and out of his reach.  

Sometimes life was just cruel.

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Winter in the Dakotas meant that darkness had long since fallen by the time supper was on the table the next evening. The snow had ended about the same time as supper was served and Kaitlyn knew that tonight would be her last night here.

Her pa would no doubt be coming to get her tomorrow.  

Despite Doctor Rankin's protests, Blanche had invited Pete to dine with them. Kaitlyn stared across the table at the man she so desperately wanted to trust. She knew it was wrong but she was in love with him—had probably been falling since the first time she'd laid eyes on him even though he'd been unconscious.  

Kaitlyn suspected that Pete felt the same way about her. After their poker game last night, Kaitlyn felt as if she knew nearly everything about the man. His favorite color was black and he had laughed when she'd argued that wasn't truly a color. His favorite season was spring just like her. He told her he was good with a gun but admitted that there were many people that were better and he had also admitted to being afraid of spiders and snakes.  

Kaitlyn had found those admissions to be incredibly endearing. She couldn't imagine her pa ever admitting to being afraid of anything.  

"I would say your pa will be here bright and early tomorrow to fetch you," Doctor Rankins pointed voice warned.  

Kaitlyn turned her gaze away from Pete and realized that he doctor was fixing her with a stern stare. She looked down at her steak and potatoes. "Yes, I'd say he will. I'm surprised he's stayed away this long."  

Blanche nodded. "It is odd. Marston is usually so overprotective of you children. He generally knows every time you breathe."  

Pete's head snapped up and his brow was creased. "Marston? I thought you said your pa's name was Jacob."  

"Yes it is. But he prefers folks to call him by his last name. He's always hated his first." It made Kaitlyn's stomach hurt to lie but she knew it was necessary. She wouldn't put her family in danger with the truth. Even the doctor and Blanch were oblivious to the fact that Jacob Marston had once been Marston Jacobs.  

Pete's frown deepened as he went back to studying his potatoes. "Oh," he mumbled.  

"You'll be moving on soon too, won't you, Pete?" Doctor Rankin inquired.  

Kaitlyn didn't miss the sharp look Blanche threw in her husband's direction which simply made the man shrug. Pete nodded as he too looked over at the doctor. "Uh.. yeah, I guess I will be. I just have to figure out a way to earn some money for a horse and supplies. I'm afraid those men didn't leave me with nothing other than a little extra lead in my blood."  

"I'm sure my pa would hire you on at the house for a while to earn a bit of money," Kaitlyn offered. "It's just him and my brother to do most of the work and he could probably use the help."  

Kaitlyn told herself she was only making the offer because she wanted to help Pete get back on his feet. She couldn't let herself admit that it was because she wanted to spend more time with him. It wouldn't be fair of her do so when she knew she could never give him what a man needed from a woman.

Pete grinned. "Will you put in a good word for me?"  

Kaitlyn felt her cheeks heat. "Of course."

---

"Kaitlyn!" Pete called in a rush as he limped out of his room that night and tripped over the fancy braided rug. He barely managed to catch himself on the stair rail.  

Kaitlyn frowned as she stood on the second step and looked down at him. "You're going to tear those stitches again."  

Pete grinned. "That'll just give you an excuse to stitch me back up."  

Pete had hoped to make her smile but instead her gaze dropped to her feet and stayed there. "I'm rather tired," she whispered.  

Pete rubbed at his neck. "I was hoping maybe we could play some more poker," he admitted. "I let you win last night, you know."  

It wasn't the truth. He hadn't let her win—she had won because she was talented and because he had kept getting distracted by the way she chewed her bottom lip when she studied her cards.  

Her eyes looked into them then and he saw the spark of temper. "No, you didn't."  

Pete smiled. "No, I didn't. I'm not too good at poker... at this point I suppose you're probably wondering if there's anything I am good at."  

Kaitlyn shook her head, her gaze dropping back to her feet. "No, I wasn't...."  

"I know this is sudden and we haven't known one another real long, Kailtyn, but... uh.. I think there's something I might just be good at if you give me the chance..." Pete reached out and smoothed a lock of hair from her face, not quite believing that he'd just spoken those words to her.  

Kaitlyn jerked away from him and folded her hands tightly in front of her. "I can't," she stated, her gaze never meeting his.  

Pete felt disappointment settle into his gut like a fifty pound anvil. His shaking hands fell to his sides. "Why not?" he asked, knowing that he deserved to know why the woman wouldn't even give him a shot.

Kaitlyn was quiet for a long moment. She swallowed hard and he could tell she was trembling. "I can't give you what you want, Pete."  

Pete put his finger under her chin and tilted her head up so he could look into her eyes. He considered it another sign that the woman was made for him when he could easily read the storm of emotions he saw in them. Sadness, uncertainty and fear mixed with longing.  

"How do you know what I want?" he asked gently as he slid his thumb across her cheek.  

Kaitlyn moved back once more and a tear slipped down her cheek. "You'll want what every man wants, Pete. You'll want what every man deserves to have from his woman and I can't give that to you. You're wasting your time on me."  

Realization dawned on Pete and had swallowing hard. Kaitlyn had been hurt in her past. Someone had taken something from her by force and now the woman was scared. Anger filled him at the thought of anyone hurting her.  

What Kaitlyn didn't realize, however, was that Pete was a patient man with absolutely nothing else to do with his life other than win her trust. He knew damn well that there was a connection between them that he couldn't simply walk away from and he wouldn't let her walk away from it either using fear as an excuse.  

"Kaitlyn, I just want to play some poker. I want to get to know more about you. I want to laugh with you and see you smile. I have no idea what other things you're talking about."  

Kaitlyn swiped her dress sleeve across her face and shook her head. "Yes you do."  

Pete sighed. "Yes, I do. But I wouldn't ever rush into nothing like that. There's a few steps a man and woman are supposed to take before they jump into those things."  

"Dammit, don't you see?!" Kaitlyn exclaimed in a loud outburst that was so out of character that it seemed to startle even her. Her eyes widened and she covered her gaping mouth with her hand as blood rushed to her face.  

She seemed absolutely horrified and Pete found it the most endearing sight he'd ever seen.  

"Dammit, don't I see what?" he asked patiently.  

Kaitlyn shook her head. "I'm broken. I can't be fixed no matter how badly you may want me to be. This is why I've always avoided having too much contact with men. I'm terrified of them... until you. And now I know you and I want to know you better but.. I just can't, Pete."  

Pete frowned and tried to reach for her hand, only to have her pull away from his touch. "Kaitlyn, you just said yourself that you aren't afraid of me. That has to mean something."  

A tear rolled down her cheek. "Pete..."  

"Things get broken, honey. Not people."  

"You're wrong." Kaitlyn closed her eyes and swallowed hard. "If you knew the things I've seen..." A shiver wracked her body. Pete wanted to take her into his arm. He wanted to vow to hold her tight and keep her safe from any more hurt. His heart couldn't take it if she pulled away from his touch again and so, instead, he simply shoved his hands deep into his pockets.  

"I think you and I could have something special, Kaitlyn. But you gotta be willing to let me try."  

A choked sob tore from her throat. "I can't," she whispered, her pain a nearly tangible thing that tore at Pete's heart. Turning on her heel, Kaitlyn bolted up the stairs and out of sight.  

Pete stood there alone in the dark for a long while. His hands were in his pockets. His shoulders were slumped. His heart was on the braided rug.  

He knew that there was something between him and Kaitlyn. It was something real and something strong and something meant to be. So why couldn't she simply trust him? He would never hurt her—not for anything in the world.  

Hell, for so long he'd been wandering around. He'd been rootless. Lost. He'd lost his family and his dream of making a difference and he hadn't had a damn thing to live for.  

Then he'd gotten shot and woken up here. With Kaitlyn. She made him once again feel a sense of purpose. It might not seem a big thing, having a purpose in life to make someone else smile, but it was more than he'd had for a long time.  

He wanted to let what was between them grow. Pete had a strong feeling that it could be a love like his parents had shared and he'd always wanted to find.  

Pete growled as he turned away from the stairs. God hated him. That's all there was to it. God wanted him to be miserable and kept throwing things his way to make sure it happened.  

For some reason Pete's thoughts when to Marston Jacobs and Pete hoped the big bastard was at least half as miserable as he was—he deserved it after letting Pete take the fall for what he'd done.  

---

Kaitlyn lay there in bed and sobbed into her pillow. Life wasn't fair, it simply wasn't! The past was the past and yet it held her trapped in its embrace and kept her from having any kind of a future.  

How could Pete ever understand the kinds of things that haunted her? The depth of her fear? Kaitlyn honestly didn't believe she would ever be able to let another man touch her in the way those men before had and, yet, if she continued on the path she was on with Pete, he would eventually want her to lay with him. Any man would eventually want those things from his woman!

It was true that Kaitlyn craved human contact. She longed to be simply held in Pete's arms. But that would lead to fear, embarrassment and truths about her past that Kaitlyn would rather just keep hidden.  

It was safer and more fair to Pete to simply end things now and allow him to move on and find a woman who could give him all of herself. Kaitlyn was broken and she always would be.  

---

Pete lay in his bed and stared at the ceiling. He had heard Kaitlyn above him crying, though she finally seemed to have quieted and gone to sleep. It had been one of the hardest tasks of his life to simply lay and listen to her cry without going to comfort her. It was the woman’s own fault that she was hurting… hell, she was hurting both of them with her stubbornness.

Pete sighed. It was the middle of the night and he was wide awake. He needed to sleep so he could leave this town behind in the morning but thoughts of Kaitlyn wouldn't let him rest.  

Hadn't Kaitlyn told him there was whiskey in the kitchen?  

Deciding that was just what he needed, Pete rose from the bed and shuffled his way to the kitchen. A hunt of the cupboards revealed that Blanch Rankin was clearly a believer of 'a place for everything and everything in its place'. It also rewarded him with a nearly full bottle of whiskey.  

Once again, Pete was reminded that it was the little victories in life that made getting up worthwhile.  

He was on his way back to his room with the bottle in hand when he heard a noise up the stairs. He stopped walking and listened closely. It came again. A feminine moan of fear. "No.. No please..." Kailtyn's voice was soft, quiet and full of desperation.  

Pete stood there barefooted at the bottom of the staircase with the whiskey bottle in his hand and wondered what he should do.  

---

Kaitlyn lay curled up on her hard bed. Her skin was bare and she was shivering. She wrapped her thin arms around her bony frame and warily watched the two men as they argued.

The short one, Vincent, had just gotten done taking what he wanted from her. He had blood on his chest—her blood. The throbbing between her legs was intense from the rough way he'd taken her but Kaitlyn didn't move or whimper as she lay there. He didn't want to draw their attention to her. Kaitlyn would rather die. 


"You gotta pay me for the ride you just took," her adoptive father, Gilliam, snapped. 


Kaitlyn gagged. An eleven year old girl shouldn't know what those words meant but she did. For the last year of her life, men had been paying Gilliam for the rides they took on her. 


Vincent sneered and leaned his hip against the wall. "I have a better idea."

“Yeah, and what would that idea be? My bullet slamming into your head?” Gilliam demanded. Kaitlyn thought that sounded like a good idea to her. Maybe the men could have a real good time and shoot each other to death.

Vincent chuckled. "I want you to hold her for me. Save her until she come of age and then I'll come back for her." 


Gilliam's face contorted with rage. "You've got to be kidding me!"

"No, I'm not kidding. I'll pay you damn good money for her. I only have one demand and that's that no other men can have her until I come back."

Gilliam snorted. "If I'm raising it, clothing it and feeding it then I'm damn sure going to take rides on it when I want." 


Kaitlyn nearly vomited but she swallowed hard to stop herself. Vomiting would only earn her a beating—possibly with Gilliam's whip. 


Vincent grumbled under his breath. "Fine. But no one else. I'll pay you five hundred for the girl. Two-fifty tonight and two-fifty when she turns sixteen and I come to collect her." 


Gilliam cracked his knuckles. "Why don't you just pay me the full five hundred tonight and take her now?"

"Because the life I live ain't no place for a scrawny girl like that one. She'd never make it." 


The two men stared hard at each other a moment but finally Gilliam nodded. "Alright, but I want a thousand for her. Five hundred now and five hundred when she turns sixteen. I'm giving up a hell of a lot of money by holding her for you." 


Vincent puffed up angrily. "Hell, she ain't nothing but a scrawny, bony, bruised up, scarred up, trembling waif of a girl! She ain't worth that kind of money! Now that red-head you had all those years ago would have been worth a thousand. I'd have happily bought her before that other outlaw had if I'd had the money." 


Gilliam squared his shoulders. "It'll be a thousand dollars or you can leave." 


Vincent let out a frustrated sigh. "Seven-fifty?" 


Gilliam fell silent, his expression thoughtful. In a way, Kaitlyn hoped he would agree to the deal. It might mean five more years with Gilliam but at least she wouldn't have to worry about all the other men any longer. 


Just as Gilliam was opening his mouth to speak, the door to the cabin burst open, and like some kind of avenging angel, Marston was there. 


The comforting wave of relief that normally came with the sight of her rescuer filled Kaitlyn, but then quickly disappeared when everything in her mind went black. 


Cold, hard hands closed around her arms. Warm, hot breath hit her face and the scent of tobacco and rotten teeth invaded her senses. 


"I'm coming for you, Kaitlyn," Vincent's angry voice hissed in her ear. 


A sob escaped her. "No...no please!"

"Yes," Vincent's mouth was on her neck and Kaitlyn nearly vomited. "I'll find you, little Kaitlyn, and you'll finally be mine." 


"No...." 

---

"Kaitlyn! Kaitlyn, honey, wake up!" Pete begged as he sat on the edge of the bed and gently clasped her shoulder.  

She wouldn't wake and it was clear whatever dream she was having was a bad one. She was writhing upon the bed and tears covered her face.  

Pete didn't care if she hit him, kicked him, screamed at him or knocked his head clean off, he had to wake her. He had to hold her. He had to make her see that with him, she would be safe from whatever the hell frightened her so bad every time she slept.  

He would never let whatever was happening to her in her dreams to happen to her again.  

"Kaitlyn, please wake up," he pleaded again, shaking her a bit harder.  

Her green eyes flew open and Pete saw the raw panic shining out of them. He braced himself for pain, fully expecting her to lash out at him just as she had in the sitting room the last time he had awaken her from a nightmare. Instead, Pete found himself shocked when Kaitlyn sat up, threw her arms around him and clung to him, sobbing against his shirt.  

"Pete..." she whispered, her voice hoarse from her tears. "Don't let him get me."  

Pete rubbed at her back. "I won't let anyone get you, honey," he promised.  

Kaitlyn's grip on the back of his shirt loosened and she pulled away. Her face was flushed and her teeth worked at her bottom lip. "I didn't mean... I was..." Clearly she was embarrassed.  

Pete laid a gentle finger against her jaw. "Kaitlyn, if you'd give me a chance, I'd never let anyone hurt you again."  

She swallowed hard and her eyes dropped. "Pete..."  

He dropped his own head so she'd be looking at him. "Please, don't push me away. I think you and I could have something real special if you'd let us. And I swear to you, here and now, that I won't ever push you for anything that you ain't ready to give."  

Pete waited patiently as a battle raged in her eyes. She gave him the smallest of nods and Pete felt his heart swell. A relief like none he'd ever known washed over him and Pete pulled Kaitlyn into his arms and held her tight.  

"What are you doing?" Kaitlyn gasped as Pete laid down upon the bed and pulled her down with him, keeping her head on his chest.  

"Going to sleep."  

"No.. no, you don't sleep here. You have to go back to your bed."

Pete shook his head. "No."  

Kaitlyn's voice shook. "You promised you wouldn't push."  

Pete sighed. "And I'm not pushing you to do anything other than sleep. I'm staying right here with you just in case those dreams come back. Trust me, Kaitlyn. I won't hurt you."

When Kaitlyn relaxed against him, Pete smiled at the ceiling. He did his very best to not touch her in any way that could be considered pushing as he held her tiny frame close to his. He didn't even give in to the urge to kiss her golden hair.  

"Goodnight, Pete," she whispered in the darkness. "You better make sure you get down to your own bed before the doctor wakes up in the morning."  

Pete chuckled. "I will."

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Marston rode into town at just after dawn. Langley rode beside him whistling a tune in the frigid winter air. Town was fairly dead. There were several store keeps attempting to clean their storefronts but for the most part, the snow and the cold were keeping everyone in.

Marston pulled Buck to a stop outside the doc's house and turned to Langley. "Ride on down to the gun shop and get that rifle so we can finish it up at the house. I'll go in and get Kaitlyn so we can get back before your mama starts to worry."  

Langley nodded and took off down the road on his black gelding, though the going was slow in the deep snow. Marston rubbed his frozen hands together in an attempt to bring warmth to them as he stepped up onto the porch.  

He knocked once and waited patiently for the doctor to answer. "Good morning, Marston," Doctor Rankin greeted with a sleepy smile and messy hair. It was clear he was just rising. "I figured you'd probably get here bright and early this morning."  

"Yeah, I have to pick up a few things and get Kaitlyn on home to her mama. Rose has been missing her something fierce."  

Marston stepped into the warm entryway and sighed with relief. He'd have never made it as an outlaw living on horseback if he'd been forced to do so up here in this cold.  

Doctor Rankin smiled. "Kaitlyn is still asleep this morning. I can have Blanche go wake her if you'd like."  

Marston scratched at his jaw. "She's asleep?" It was odd for Kaitlyn to sleep much past five.  

"Yes," Doctor Rankin replied. "She's been working herself so hard the last few days, I'm sure she's exhausted."

Marston nodded and pulled up the collar of his coat. "I'll just go get what I need from the mercantile then and come back for her once I'm done."  

"Sounds good. I have to go check on my patient. He should be ready to leave soon."  

Marston watched Doctor Rankin step to the patient room and open the door. Curiosity got the better of Marston and he followed the doctor only to realize that the bed was empty.  

"Where is he?" Marston asked.  

The doctor scratched at his hair. "He must have left in the night...."  

Marston's eyes landed on a pair of worn boots beside the bed. He raised his brow. "Barefoot?"  

The doctor's eyes widened and he glanced up at the ceiling above them. "Oh dear..."

Marston's temper surged. He strode from the room, intent on killing. He pulled his gun and marched up the steps, aware of the doctor and Blanche scurrying along behind him. They were talking fast and attempting to talk him into calming down.  

Hell no.  

He would kill whoever this damn bastard was for whatever it was he was doing with Kaitlyn and then Marston would go home and throw a big old 'I told you so' right in Rose's general direction.  

As Marston approached the door to the room that Kaitlyn would be using, he decided that a gun was too merciful. He put it away and pulled his knife. Up close and personal.  

---

Kaitlyn felt more warm and safe than she had ever felt in her life. She had her face pressed against Pete's chest and instead of being frightened by his closeness, she was captivated.  

His scent. The hardness of his body. The steadiness of his breathing. All those things amazed her. Kaitlyn took a deep breath and witch hazel filled her nostrils. The early morning sunlight, streaming through the window washed over his face and Kaitlyn studied him closely.  

The left side of his face, the boyish dimpled side, was completely hidden from her view. Instead she found herself studying disfigured half of his face. She found herself wondering, as she took in the details of that puckered and twisted scar, if he'd once had a dimple in that cheek just as he had in the left.  

Raising a trembling hand, Kaitlyn pressed her fingers again the skin there and realized it was soft and smooth beneath her touch. Who had burned the man? And why?

She sensed a change in his breathing. "Good morning," he whispered as his eyes opened. They were deep, rich brown. Similar in color to the imported chocolate bars the mercantile charged five dollars apiece for.  

Kaitlyn was amazed that she felt no fear as she lay there with him. She knew that most of that was due to the fact that he had been a perfect gentleman all night. He had never once tried to touch her and had instead allowed her to curl herself up against him and they had slept wrapped around one another.  

Kaitlyn's nightmares hadn't returned. Pete was right when he said they shared something special. She felt it too.  

"Good morning," she whispered in return.  

The peace of the moment was quickly shattered when the door to the room burst open and crashed against the wall. Pete quickly put his body between Kaitlyn and the intruder. She saw him reach for his hip but he'd left his gun belt in his room downstairs.  

Panic filled her and she grabbed at the back of his shirt. "Who is it?"  

Pete couldn't answer her. His mouth simply wouldn't work. Standing before him, knife drawn and looking ready to kill, was the man who had helped destroy Pete's entire life.  

"Marston..." he hissed, the name leaving Pete's lips like a curse.  

Marston stopped in his tracks and stared hard at him. "You oughta tell me your name, friend. I like knowing the name of a man before I cover myself in his blood."  

When Marston took a step forward, Pete stepped from the bed and met the challenge despite the fact that he had no weapon. "You should remember me, Marston. After all, you helped ruin my life."  

Marston angry snarl became a frown. "Pete?" he raised his brow. "You look different." Then he shrugged. "Of course you're about to look dead unless you can explain real fast what you were doing in bed with my daughter."  

Pete turned an accusing glance back toward Kaitlyn. "

This is your pa?“

Kaitlyn got out of the bed, (fully clothed to Marston's relief), and she chewed her lip as she nodded.  

Doctor Rankin poked his head in the room. "Marston, we had no idea he was up here or we would have done something."  

Kaitlyn stepped forward. "Pa, nothing happened."  

Marston put his knife away slowly. "I know nothing happened. If I thought something had happened, he'd be bleeding and you'd be explaining yourself over his dead body."

Pete just stood there feeling hurt, angry and betrayed. He should have known. Jacob Marston? Louisiana? Adopted children? Pete had always been good at piecing things together but he hadn't done so with Kaitlyn—probably because he hadn't really wanted to know the truth.  

Why in the hell did God hate him so damn much? He finally meets the woman he loves, gets her to begin to trust him and then finds out she's the daughter of the man he'd sworn to hate for the rest of his life. And she talked about the man as if he was Jesus himself come back to walk the earth! Marston Jacobs was a far cry from being Jesus!  

"Like she said, Marston, nothing happened. Don't waste your time killing me. I'm leaving."  

Kaitlyn reached out and caught Pete by the back of shirt when he attempted to walk toward the door. He stopped in his tracks. "Don't leave," she whispered. "Where are you going?"  

"Somewhere that's not here," Pete replied without looking at her. His stomach burned, his hands shook and his heart ached. "You were right, Kaitlyn. We won't work. Not if that bastard is your father."  

"But I thought you said..." Kaitlyn stopped when her breath hitched in a sob.  

Pete felt that sob deep in his heart but still he pulled out of her grasp, stormed around Marston and left the room. He wasted no time before donning his gun belt, pulling on his boots and duster coat and walking out into the cold, slamming the door behind him.  

---

"What the hell was that about?" Marston grumbled. "I ain't never seen a grown man throw a fit quite like that before."  

"I don't know," Kaitlyn replied miserably before wrapping her arms tight around herself.  

Marston shifted his feet. "What were you doing up here with him?"  

"We'll just give you two some privacy..." Doctor Rankin said before tugging Blanche away from the door.  

Kaitlyn walked to the window and gazed out over the snow covered plains behind the doctor's house. She tightened her arms around herself, as if she could hold in the pain and keep it from bursting forth and filling the whole room.  

Pete had made her promises. He'd made it sound as if he loved her. He had told her that she would be safe with him. But Pete had lied. He had done something that none of the men before him ever had. He had broken her heart.  

"I had a dream," she replied quietly. "A nightmare. He heard me and was only comforting me. I suppose we fell asleep."  

She didn't look at her pa because she didn't want to see his disappointment. Kaitlyn simply wouldn't be able to stand it just now.  

"A nightmare?" Marston asked. He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and struck a match to light it as he leaned against the far wall.  

Kaitlyn stole a glance at him but his eyes were focused on the window as well and staring off into the distance. "Yes," she replied.  

"About Gilliam?" he demanded, the name sounded like poison as it left his mouth.  

Kaitlyn's eyes widened. "How did you know?"  

Marston shrugged and finally met her gaze. "I've heard you have a few." Of course he had. There wasn't much that Marston Jacobs missed. "You and your mama have that man in common so I figured yours probably came from the same place."  

Kaitlyn swallowed hard. "You never said you knew."

"You never said you had them. I figured when you wanted to talk about them, you would. It wasn't my place to bring them up."  

Kaitlyn looked out the window once again. Knowing her pa, he probably hadn't even told her mama about her dreams. It simply wasn't his way to poke his nose into things he didn't consider to be his business.  

"Who is he, pa?" Kaitlyn whispered. "And why does he hate you so much?"  

"I reckon you already know his name, Kaitlyn," Marston grumbled. "And I don't know why he hates me." Marston shrugged. "I don't really care."  

He took a draw off the cigarette in his hand and Kaitlyn's eyes narrowed. "The doc doesn't want you doing that in here," she scolded. Kaitlyn strode to him, took the cigarette from his hand and snuffed it out on the base of the lamp on the nightstand.  

Marston growled as he crossed his arms over his broad chest. "Pete was one of the deputies at the jail in Millerton when I was being held there."  

He saw dread and disbelief fill her features. "Was he one of them that helped the Marshall take you away? Was he one of them that threatened us? Did he torture you?"  

Marston sighed. "No to all three." Kaitlyn's shoulders sagged with relief. "He seemed like a good man. I suppose that's why I liked him. When I went back and killed that Marshall, Pete was there."

"Does he hate you for killing the Marshall?" Kaitlyn asked, finding that hard to believe. That Marshall had been the worst kind of evil.

"No, he approved of what I did. Duke wanted to kill Pete but I spared his life and we went our separate ways."  

Kaitlyn was confused. "So, why does he hate you now?"  

Marston scratched at his arm. "I already told you I don't know."  

Kaitlyn couldn't hold the pain in any longer. She broke down in sobs. Tears poured from her eyes. Marston stood there in horror for a moment before stepping to her and hugging her gently, rubbing her back the most comforting way he knew how.  

He had never hugged Kaitlyn much given her fear of being touched but right now the girl looked as if she certainly needed one. "What's wrong?" he asked gruffly. "Why are you crying?"  

"Because I love him," Kaitlyn whispered against his chest.  

Marston closed his eyes and shivered. He made a sound as if about to be sick before pulling away to look down at her. "And that makes you cry?"  

"Yes!" she exclaimed as she swiped at her face with the back of her hand. "Because clearly he hates you more than he loves me back no matter what he said last night."  

It didn't take more than five seconds to realize she had said more to her pa than she should have. His face hardened with anger. His golden eyes flashed. "Whatever is wrong with Pete has everything to do with me and 

nothing to do with you. That man made you promises and he is damn well gonna honor them. I can promise you that.“

"No pa! I don't want him coming back if it's by force!" Kaitlyn countered but Marston was already gone and Kaitlyn had no choice but to chase him.  

---

Pete kept sinking up to his knees in the deep snow and his side was aching with the effort it took to trudge along at a snail's pace. Hell he hadn't even made it more than twenty feet from the doc's yet! He told himself that his slow pace had nothing to do with the fact that he'd left his heart behind at the doctor's house. He wanted to leave town—he really did! No matter how loudly his heart called him a liar.  

"Who are you?" Pete looked up to see a red-haired boy with ash streaks on his freckled face staring down at him from atop a black gelding.  

"Why do you care?" Pete snapped, in no mood for small talk.  

"Normally I wouldn't," the young man replied. "But I know everybody that lives here town and we don't get many strangers. That leaves me to think that you're the stranger that got shot up and has been snowed in at the doc's with my sister. Since you're hightailing it with you tail between your legs just after my pa went in, I reckon I have a good enough reason to want to know who you are."  

"Great," Pete mumbled. "Another one."  

"Another what?" the red-head asked.  

"Another damned one of you people that worships the ground 

Jacob Marston walks on! I’m guessing you’re Langley?“ Langley simply nodded and crossed his arms over his chest as he stared down at Pete. “Well my name is Pete Mears and your precious pa killed a man and let me take the fall for it.”

"My pa wouldn't do something like that," Langley snapped, hopping down from his horse with his fists clenched.  

Pete snorted. "Well, he did. I had to run for my life, wander for five years, and get shot over a damned card game because the worthless dealer gave me three aces. I just about die in a snow bank but wake up here with your sister taking care of me and do you know what my brain addled ass did? It went and fell in love with her only to have Marston ride in and tell me that I can't have what little bit of happiness I've managed to find since he took my life away from me....."  

"Hey?" Marston's angry voice cut off Pete's rant. Pete prepared himself to give Marston a piece of his mind but when he turned he found his face colliding with Marston's very large and very angry fist.  

The force of the impact on Pete's jaw had him stumbling backward and falling into the snow while the resounding thud echoed in his ears.  

"Pa!" Kaitlyn exclaimed over Langley's laughter.  

Pete was seeing stars and not quite able to focus on anything as he raised his hand to his lip and realized he was bleeding. Then he became all too aware of Kaitlyn on her knees beside him and her tiny hands caressing his face. Flames shot through his blood and made Pete forget all about the fact that he was lying in a snow bank.  

"Are you okay?" she asked softly. Pete nodded and her wide green eyes narrowed as she glared up at Marston. "Why on earth did you hit him? You should be ashamed of yourself!"  

Pete wasn't surprised to see no guilt on Marston's face. Instead the man looked angry. Real angry. "I shouldn't be anything," he countered. "That whiny ass little pansy boy needs to learn how to stand up, fight like a man and take responsibility for the shit that happens in his life instead of blaming it on everyone else."  

Marston's voice never raised to more than a low growl but there was plenty of rage behind his words.  

Pete bit back his moans of pain as he slowly got back to his feet. "It was your fault, Marston," he hissed. Kaitlyn's hand slipped into his and Pete swallowed hard, hoping he'd be able to keep his wits about him with her touch causing his brain to have trouble focusing.  

Marston shook his head and chuckled. 

Chuckled? “How you got that figured?”

Pete's free hand clenched tightly. He had led a nonexistent life for five years because of this bastard and he had the nerve to chuckle?!

"I had to run for my life because I refused to give up your name. You have anything to say about that?"  

"As a matter of fact, I do," Marston replied with a slow drawl. His gaze went to Kaitlyn who appeared concerned but also hopeful. Then to Langley who was simply amused with the whole thing. Then back to Pete who appeared angry enough to bite the heads off of nails.  

Marston wasn't sure what he was supposed to feel guilty about.  

"Pa, don't you think you should be saying whatever it is you have to say?" Kaitlyn urged.  

Marston nodded. "Sure." He crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged as he looked down his nose at Pete. "You're an idiot."

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

“What?!” Kaitlyn and Pete demanded in unison while Langley began laughing so hard, he pulled his hat off and smacked it against his thigh.

"God pa! You crack me up!" Langley gasped between guffaws. "Nothing like telling a man like it is."  

Curious faces pressed against window around them and Marston growled. "Let's go talk somewhere private."  Without waiting for anyone to agree he strode away toward the gun shop.  

Pete began making his way slowly after the man, his side pulling with every step he took in the deep snow. Kaitlyn's hand in his helped take away a bit of the hurt.  

"I made you cry," Pete whispered shamefully.  

"Yes, you did," Kaitlyn agreed softly.  

Pete had never been more ashamed in his life. "I'm sorry."

Kaitlyn shrugged. "I think you have some explaining to do and I promise my pa will listen better once we're somewhere with more privacy. Folks around here don't know about his life before and he wants to keep it that way."  

Pete doubted that. "I don't think he will, honey," he assured her. "I didn't see any sympathy in his eyes."  

Kaitlyn chose not to say anything. She knew how hard-headed and cold her pa could be sometimes with people outside the family. The only people he seemed to truly care about were her, her siblings and their mama—occasionally Uncle Jeremiah and Uncle Duke.  

"I really am sorry I made you cry, Kaitlyn. I overreacted when I saw Marston. I'd been carrying around a lot of hate for a long time and it all came bubbling up at once."  

"I understand." Kaitlyn attempted to pull her hand away but Pete hardened his jaw and refused to let her go. He was determined to enjoy her closeness for what few minutes he had left to do so. He had no doubt that Marston would make her choose which man she wanted and he also had no doubt that Kaitlyn would choose her pa when given the ultimatum.  

It was clear she thought the sun rose and set in that man.  

Pete's side was throbbing and burning when they finally reached the gun shop. He was quick to lean against a bench and take the pressure off the aching wound. Marston stoked up the fire in the stove and he and Langley stood beside it, warming their hands.  

"Close the door," Marston said sternly and Pete reached out and did just that. "Now we can talk." Marston took a long draw off the cigarette in his hand. Langley held out his hand as if wanting a draw of his own. "Boy, your mama would have my head on a platter. If you want to smoke, you'll have to buy it yourself and face her wrath alone."  

"That's what you're good at, isn't it Marston?" Pete practically snarled. "Keeping your nose out of shit and making everyone face things alone?"  

Kaitlyn removed her hand from his and folded her hands in front of her. "Are the two of you going to continue to fight or are you actually going to talk things over?" Her soft voice held an edge of irritation and nerves. Pete wondered what the hell she had to be nervous about. It was his heart that was going to be ripped up and tossed in the snow when all was said and done.  

"He's the one that keeps bitchin'," Marston assured her.  

Kaitlyn's green eyes glared at him. "You either be nice or I'll tell mama."  

Pete was damn sure he saw fear flash in Marston's eyes which was an emotion he hadn't even seen in them when Marston had been about to hang all those years ago. Was that the man's weakness? You threatened to tell his wife on him?

Marston grumbled and turned his gaze to Pete. "Alright then, Pete. Explain to me real good and slow exactly how everything bad that's happened in your life is my fault."  

Marston appeared bored as he stood against the wall and smoked slowly and it made Pete's temper raise. He wanted to let Marston have it good but he spared glances at Kaitlyn and Langley. Marston grunted. "Anything you have to say to me you can say in front of them. I don't have any secrets from my family."  

Pete crossed his arms over his chest and met Marston's gaze head on. "You killed that Marshall and then you took off. I took the fall for what you did."  

"They thought 

you killed him?“ Marston demanded with disbelief.

Pete glared at him. "No, no not 

little Pete. They didn’t think I was capable of something like that. But they also didn’t believe me when I said I didn’t know who did.“

Marston chuckled. "Why didn't you just tell them?"  

Pete's temper piqued and his jaw popped. "Because I was protecting you!"  

Marston's eyes widened slightly as if the man were surprised by the news. He appeared ready to speak but then he glanced at Kaitlyn and stopped. Pete followed his gaze and realized Kaitlyn was staring at him with what could only be described as awe.  Pete had never had anyone look at him that way before and he swallowed hard.  

When Marston cleared his throat, Pete tore his gaze away from Kaitlyn's green eyes and found the man shaking his head in defeat. "What you did was admirable and I thank you for that, but I still feel as if you're a bit of an idiot."  

"Pa..." Kaitlyn warned.  

Marston held up his hand. "Let me finish," he scolded. "Now Pete, you never should have risked your neck for me because I wouldn't have done the same for you. You should have just hightailed the hell out of there before they showed up or given them my name and told them the truth. I'm a big boy and I can take care of me and mine."  

"I guess I should just go down to Millerton right now then and clear my name," Pete grumbled.  

Marston shrugged. "Go ahead."  

Pete shook his head. "You really don't give a hell about what I sacrificed for you and your family, do you?"  

Marston was quiet a long moment, simply staring at him and smoking with his face an unreadable mask. Finally he sighed. "Yes, I give a hell. I'm sorry you took the fall for something I did and had to run. I'm sorry that life has been hard on you for the last few years. But I still can't see how it's my fault. I never threatened you. Hell, I spared your life! I never even told you that you had to lie to cover for me. You did those things all one your own, and while I thank you for that, I can't see how I owe you a damn thing."

"I thought we were friends," Pete ground out. "I thought I could actually make a difference in your life and serve some sort of purpose by protecting you and your family. Now you say it was all for nothing because you could have just gotten by without my help."  

Marston wasn't sure what to say. He wanted to tell Pete's whiny, woe-as-me ass to get the hell out of his gun shop and out of his sight but he had seen the way Kaitlyn had been looking at the man. And he had also seen the way Pete looked at Kaitlyn.  

He supposed he did owe the man 

some gratitude. Pete had made a damn big sacrifice for him. It made Marston’s stomach burn to know that someone he barely knew had done something like that. Pete was barely recognizable because of that scar and he was hundreds of miles from home, living a life he clearly wasn’t cut out to live all because he had done something nice for Marston.

Why did people insist on doing nice things for him and forcing him to be nice in return? Nice simply wasn't his thing.

"Pete, dammit, you're pissing me off," Marston grumbled. "I said thank you and I said I'm sorry, what more do you want? It's not that I'm not grateful for what you did, because I am. If the law had known about me then it would have put my family in danger and caused us to have to live on the run so I'm a big enough man to admit that you did make a difference in our lives. But if what you're wanting me to do is somehow make up for the last five years or so then you're barking up the wrong tree. You're a grown man and need to take responsibility for the choices you made. If you want to settle down then you're more than welcome to settle down here and I'll do what I can to help you out."  

Marston's eyes narrowed and he took a step forward. "But if you're still wanting to leave town then you better take off at a real fast run because if my daughter sheds one more tear over you I have a knife for close range, a revolver for midrange, and I can shoot the balls off a gnat from three hundred yards with my rifle."  

Pete stood there in shock. Marston wasn't going to make Kaitlyn shook between him and her pa? He was actually giving the ultimatum to Pete? Well, hell, that wasn't even a hard choice!  

Before Pete could swear a hundred times that he'd stay right here in Windfall, Langley stepped forward. "He made my sister cry?"  

Marston chuckled and laid his hand on his son's shoulder. "Calm down. Let's give the man a moment to decide what he wants to do before we make his face match."  

"Pa!" Kaitlyn exclaimed but her father and brother merely flashed sheepish grins and shrugged.  

Kaitlyn wrung her hands, more angry with her father in that moment than she ever had been before. She had told her pa that she didn't want Pete to stay around if it was only by force. He was already making a huge sacrifice by being with her and she certainly didn't want him making that sacrifice simply because he feared for his life!

Kaitlyn turned and jerked open the door, blinded by the sunlight glaring off the snow as she ran outside. Kaitlyn made her way as quickly as she could through the deep snow, desperate to be away from those men. They were acting like children. They were blaming one another for things that were no one's fault and were simply the result of a terrible situation. A situation that wouldn't have happened at all if Marston hadn't saved her from Gilliam. What Pete didn't realize was that he hated Marston for causing the situation at the jail when, in truth, it was all Kaitlyn's fault.  

Marston would have done a better job killing Vincent if he hadn't been distracted by her. Vincent had been the one to turn Marston in which had led to the Marshall finding him, Marston escaping and Pete being tortured before running for his life. Everything led right back to her.  

"Kaitlyn!" Pete's voice called out from behind her but Kaitlyn didn't stop and didn't turn around. "Dammit, Kaitlyn, you must really love stitching me up because you're going to be doing it again if you make me keep chasing you."

Those words stopped her but she didn't turn to face him. "Just go, Pete. You don't have to stay. And I'll be sure not to cry so they won't feel the need to hurt you."  

Pete was panting as he caught up to her. "Aren't you even gonna ask what I want to do?" he asked gently.  

Kaitlyn shook her head. "I thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you did for my pa. What he said to you is all you're going to get. I don't blame you for wanting to leave. You lost so much because of what my family did.... "

 Kaitlyn kept her gaze on the snow as Pete came around to stand in front of her. "It was my own fault, Kaitlyn, your pa was right. I should have took off before the Marshall's body was found and it would have saved me this scar—or I could have turned him in. Your pa is right. He's an ass but he's still right. I can't keep blaming everyone else for my problems."  

"I still won't blame you for wanting to leave," Kaitlyn insisted.  

"I don't want to leave, honey. I want to stay here. I want to stay with you. I'm sorry I stormed out of the doc's that way—I guess  I just needed space to cool off... Maybe I needed some sense knocked into me by your pa's meaty fist..."  

"This seems an awful fast change of heart, Pete," Kaitlyn whispered.  

"Not really. My pa used to always say we have to focus on the here and the now because everything else is just clutter. I suppose I always knew deep down that it wasn't Marston's fault. I just needed someone to blame for my lost dreams and changed life and blaming your pa was easy. That's all over now. If all that hadn't happened I wouldn't be standing here and I wouldn't have you. Everything led me right here. Even that damn dealer and his three aces."  

Tears filled Kaitlyn's eyes. "I can't let you do this, Pete.. I can't let you make another sacrifice to be with me. You deserve so much more than what I can give to you." Kaitlyn attempted to walk around him and when Pete moved to stop her, his feet became tangled and he fell face first into the snow.  

Kaitlyn rushed forward to help him but he flipped onto his back before she could and his laughter rang out in the morning air. "I can't even walk in a straight line when I get around you! I never used to fall this much," he insisted, pulling himself back to his feet.  

Then suddenly his laughing brown eyes became more serious. The left side of his face lifted in a warm smile while the scar on the right simply curved slightly. It would have given him a scary appearance had Kaitlyn not know of the kindness that lived inside the man. "I want to stay right here with you, Kaitlyn," he whispered.  

Kaitlyn shook her head. "Pete, I'm serious."  

Pete nodded. "I'm serious too. Have you seen how clumsy I am around you? Hell, if I was this clumsy all the time, I would have died ages ago."  

Kaitlyn wrapped her coat tighter around herself and sighed. "That's not what I'm talking about and you know it."  

Pete pulled off his duster coat and, despite her protests, he draped it around her shoulders. "I know it's not," he admitted. Then he sighed. "I want to know exactly what you think I'd be sacrificing by staying here with you."  

Kaitlyn attempted to look down at the snow but he cupped her chin tenderly and forced her to look up at him. "And I want you to look at me when you say it."  

Kaitlyn glared but relented. "Pete, this is all so fast. I truly think I might just be falling in love with you but that's not fair to you. I might not be able to give you what other women could...."  

Kaitlyn's words trailed off when Pete's face curved in a smile so broad, she worried his face might crack from it. Kaitlyn was confused by his happiness and even more confused when he threw his arms around her and pulled her into a tight hug that cut off her breath.  

"I don't want what any other woman has, Kaitlyn. I want you and I can promise you now that being with you will never be something I see as a sacrifice."  

Pete pulled away and his brown eyes were wide and bright as he gazed down at her. Kaitlyn had a suspicion that he was holding back tears and that tugged at her heart in a way nothing else could have. "Do you know how long I've waited for you? The last five years I lived with so much anger. I cursed God and I cursed being alive. I hated myself and every other living person. I used to think that for just one good thing to ever happen to me it would take a miracle. Now I feel like such a fool. Kaitlyn, if I had known that you were the good thing all those other things were leading me toward, I never would have complained about the bad."  

Kaitlyn felt tears fill her own eyes. In a move that surprised even herself, Kaitlyn threw her arms around Pete and hugged him, burying her face against his chest.  

"I love you, Kaitlyn," Pete whispered into her hair. "No strings and no expectations. I just want to be with you."  

"Good. Now that that's settled can we get on home where it's warm, Kaitlyn? Your mama is missing you something fierce and Lucy keep saying something about you owing her two bedtime stories."  

Pete broke the contact between himself and Kaitlyn and realized that Marston and Langley were standing directly behind them. Langley just looked uncomfortable and Marston appeared be to be torn between acceptance and murder.  

Kaitlyn stepped forward and folded her hands in front of her. "Pa, I told Pete that since those men stole everything he had when they shot him, he could work at our place to earn some money to get him back on his feet."  

Marston nodded without hesitation. "Sure."  

"Thank you, pa!" Kaitlyn replied, smiling brightly.  

Marston kissed her hair and grinned. "Don't thank me yet. He's sleeping in the barn."

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

“Damn Marston. Nice house,” Pete muttered when the large two story home came into view. Pete had never seen an outlaw with such nice accommodations.

"My brother won it in a poker game and he gave it to Rose and the children back when they thought I was a dead man."  

Pete pulled the gray mare that Marston had rented in town for him to a stop just as the big black door to the house opened and a young girl with dark brown curls ran out with an old hound on her heels.  

"Pa's home!" the girl exclaimed, her curls dancing around her face as she bounced. "And he brought Kaitlyn back!"  

Pete dismounted the mare and watched Marston help Kaitlyn off Buck's back before the outlaw took off running toward the house.  

"Apparently I'm nothing but chopped liver," Langley muttered.  

Pete watched Marston as he scooped the young girl up in his arms and spun her around. It was strange to see Marston looking so different. He looked nothing like a dangerous outlaw in that moment and every inch a loving family man.  

Kaitlyn came to stand beside Pete just as a soft bodied woman with thick red curls stepped from the house. She had skin nearly as white as the snow around them and her big eyes lit up at the sight of Marston.  

"Is that your mama?" Pete quietly asked Kaitlyn.  

"Yep," Langley replied before Kaitlyn could. "Nicest woman you'll ever meet most of the time. Uncle Duke likes to joke though that mama can't be as sweet and kind as she seems because it would have taken a woman with more than a little outlaw in her to tame pa."  

Pete nodded. Marston certainly looked tamed as he pressed a soft kiss to Rose's lips and propped the girl upon his hip.  

That was what Pete wanted. He wanted a woman who looked at him with that kind of love. He glanced down at Kaitlyn and she blushed and turned her gaze to the snow.  

"Who is that?" Rose questioned, pointing at Pete.  

Marston sighed. "Pete. Apparently he's in love with our daughter." 	

"And he's still breathing?" Rose teased.  

Marston growled. "Barely."  

She smiled as she laid her head on his arm comfortingly. "Do you know him?"  

"Yep," Marston replied. "He was a deputy in Millerton." Marston didn't go into any further detail with Lucy listening intently to every word her parents said.  

Rose was quiet a moment before nodded. "I remember you telling me about him."  

Lucy shifted in his arms, grabbed him by his ear and forced his gaze to her. "What?" Marston asked, fighting back a smile.  

"I'm cold."  

"Well it's January," he reminded her. "And you came out without a coat. What did you think was going to happen?"  

"Don't lecture," she pouted. "Just take me in where it's warm."  

Marston laughed. "Go to your mama and she'll take you in where it's warm. We'll get the horses put up and join you in a minute."  

"Okay," she smiled brightly and Marston gave her over to Rose.  

"Kaitlyn, you get on in where it's warm too," Marston ordered as he stepped off the porch.  

Kaitlyn was quick to do as he said and the men found themselves alone. "So, that's the family the Marshall threatened to take from you?" Pete asked quietly as the three of them led their horses toward the barn.  

"Yes."

"It take a brave man to die protecting his family, Marston," Pete noted. "You were willing to do just that and you would have had that rope worked."  

Marston grunted. "It takes a brave man to face what you faced just to save a man and a family that he doesn't know, Pete. Thank you for that."  

Marston hadn't looked away from his task of removing Buck's saddle as he'd spoken but Pete could hear the sincerity in his words.  

"Aww, are the two of you are getting me all choked up. Would you like a few minutes alone?" Langley teased.  

Marston shook his head. "You've spent too much time with Duke and Jeremiah. You've gotten just about as annoying as they are."  

Langley laughed and the barn fell into silence as all the men went about their chores.  

They walked into the house a short time later and Pete stared at the size of the place. It smelled homey, like pies and bread. The wood was gleaming and the decorations were simple but elegant.  

"That must have been one hell of a card game your brother was playing," Pete mused.  

"He always has been a lucky bastard," Marston agreed. Then he grinned. "That was one time it happened to work in my favor."  

The warm den Marston led him into reminded Pete of his family's cabin back in Louisiana. A warm fire burned in the fireplace and two armchairs sat in front of it. Two sofa's sat a bit further away and two sewing tables were in the far corner. A gun cabinet stood in against the wall beside a window. Dolls and blocks littered the floor beside one of the sofas and that big hound was curled up on a rug beside the fire.  

The little girl Pete knew must be Lucy was playing with dolls while Kaitlyn sat on the sofa watching her. "Where's your mama?" Marston asked as he slid his rifle from his back and removed his coat.  

Pete simply stared at the giant of a man. He'd forgotten how damn big Marston was. "She's in the kitchen," Lucy replied. Without a word, Marston left the room.  

"I'll be back in a while," Langley said before disappearing up a staircase.  

Lucy stared up at Pete and he saw a flicker of unease in her blue eyes when her gaze became locked on his scar. His stomach turned a little. Children were always frightened of him—he was a monster in their eyes.  

"Lucy, it's not polite to stare," Kaitlyn scolded gently. "This is Pete Mears. He's a friend of pa's."  

Pete raised a brow. The word friend was pushing it a little.  

"He's your friend too," Lucy replied. "I can tell cuz you keep looking at him the way mama looks at pa."  

Kaitlyn blushed and stared down at her lap. "Yes, he's my friend too."  

Lucy and Pete continued to stare at one another. It was clear that this was Marston's biological child. She had his darker coloring and his brown hair. Her eyes were blue like her mama's but they were just as sharp as her outlaw pa's.

"What happened to your face?" she asked suddenly.  

"Lucy!" Kaitlyn gasped but Pete chuckled.  

The girl certainly didn't act the least bit afraid of him. She was the first child he'd met since his accident that hadn't run away from him screaming or hidden behind their mama's skirts.

"I made someone mad," he replied.  

Lucy nodded. "Real mad from the looks of it." She adjusted the dress on one of her dolls. "You look a little scary."  

Kaitlyn hid her face in her hands but Pete found the young girl to be a breath of fresh air. "Well, you don't seem scared of me."  

Lucy shrugged her tiny shoulders. "I'm not. You don't have to be scared of things when you got a pa like mine."  

Pete tilted his head. "Is that so?"  

"Yep. Pa always says he'll just shoot anything that scares me so I don't have nothing to be scared of."  

"Anything," Kaitlyn mumbled from behind her hands. "You don't have anything to be afraid of."  

Lucy let out a long exasperated sigh. "That's what I said."  

"Who wants tea?" Marston asked as he stepped back into the room balancing a tray with a dainty tea kettle and matching glasses. It was so strange a sight that Pete nearly laughed out loud.  

One by one, everyone took a cup and Marston and Rose sat down on the sofa across from Kaitlyn. Pete hesitated a moment before sitting beside Kaitlyn on the sofa.  

Rose cleared her throat. "Pete, Marston explained to me exactly who you are while we were in the kitchen and I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the sacrifice and risk you took to keep our family safe."  

Pete shrugged and stared down into his tea. That old, familiar pull toward making a difference and seeing justice done right flickered to life inside him. It had been a long time since Pete had felt that.  

"Don't mention it, ma'am. I was only doing what I thought was right."  

Rose waved her hand. "Just the same, I thank you. And I want to let you know that as far as I'm concerned our house is yours for as long as you'd like to stay."  

"Thank you, ma'am," Pete said, touched by the woman's kindness. She really was the opposite of her grumbly husband.  

Rose smiled. "And while you're here, you will 

not be sleeping in the barn. There is a spare room directly behind the kitchen that was used for servant’s quarters when the previous owners lived here. You can sleep there.“

"He'll be sleeping in the barn," Marston growled.  

Pete saw Rose's blue eyes narrow. She kissed Marston's hard cheek and let her lips linger there. "Spare room behind the kitchen."  

Pete swore it was like watching the Great Wall of China tumble. Marston sighed. "Fine."  

He took a sip of his tea and Pete wondered if the man realized he was pouting.  

"I thank you for that, ma'am," Pete acknowledged. "And so does my back. Your home is lovely."  

"Thank you. It's a far cry from where we used to live," Rose admitted.  

Kaitlyn nodded. "The barns here are nicer than our old cabin."  

Marston grunted. "Hell the outhouse is nicer than that cabin was."  

Laughter filled the sitting room. Rose snuggled closer to Marston whose arm instantly went around her shoulders. "Marston told me how good you were to him when you last knew one another, Pete. He said you were a good friend."  

Marston grunted. "I never said friend."  

Rose nodded. "Yes you did."  

"No, I didn't."  

"Yes you did."  

"I must have been drunk."  

"No you weren't," Rose scolded with a shake of her head. She turned her attention back to Pete. "He hates feeling as if he owes anyone anything. He hates anyone knowing that he has a heart inside that crusty exterior. But there is a heart. It's rusty and it squeaks a little but it's there."  

Marston was growling as he stood up. "That's enough about that. Come on, Pete. You said you wanted to work and earn money so let's go."  

"Pa, he needs time to heal," Kaitlyn countered.  

Marston grinned. "You need a nap or something?"  

While rest sounded good to Pete, he wasn't going to tell Marston that. Not when he had seen Marston with a back that looked more like raw meat than skin and the man hadn't broken a single time even while the infection had ravaged him.  "No, I'm okay."  

"Well, let's get to work then, boy," Marston urged and he left the room. Pete spared a longing glance in Kaitlyn's direction before following after the outlaw.  

---

Frank rode into Armadillo Texas feeling dried out and in bad need of whiskey and a bath. He’d been traveling hard since leaving Vincent’s, searching for any sign of Marston Jacobs. Frank wasn’t real sure how he was supposed to locate a man who’d spent the last five years living as a ghost but Frank would do anything for his brother.

He hitched his horse outside The Double Decker Saloon and stepped inside, allowing his eyes to adjust to the change of light for several moments. It was still fairly early in the day and the saloon wasn't crowded. Several scantily clad bar maids lounged at the back tables and one of them waved her brightly painted nails at him.  

Frank tipped his hat to her and then made his way to the bar and settled himself down on a rickety stool. He curled his nose at the three crusty men sitting down from him. Frank had always hated it when people let themselves get that dirty. Soap was cheap and rivers were free.

"What can I get you, Frank?" the bartender, Otis, asked.  

"Whiskey."  

Otis nodded and uncorked a bottle before grabbing a shot glass from beneath the bar. "How is your brother doing?"  

"He's still dying," Frank replied, taking the full shot glass and downing it quickly. "He's got me out searching for information on someone."

"Who would that be?" Otis asked, scratching at his jaw. "I know quite a few folks that wander around these parts."  

Frank stole a quick glance at the men down the bar and realized they were all listening intently. He sighed. "You'll probably think I'm more than a little crazy for asking about him."  

Otis laughed as he refilled Frank's glass. "Nothing wrong with being a little crazy."  

Frank rubbed at his neck, feeling more than a little foolish. "Marston Jacobs."

"Really?" Otis chuckled and raised a bushy gray brow. "I don't know if you and that brother of yours got the word but Marston Jacobs has been dead a long time."  

Frank downed his second shot and shook his head. "I thought so to but I heard from somebody that knew Marston well and that man said it wasn't Marston who was buried in that grave."  

"Is that so?" Otis sat down the glass he'd been wiping and leaned his elbows against the bar. "Who the hell was it then?"  

Frank shrugged. "I don't know. But the man said that whoever they buried had blue eyes."  

"But Marston's were gold," Otis noted. "They were so cold and full of fire it was as if the devil himself had come back from the pits of hell. Marston Jacobs had a way of looking at a man that made his spine turn to water right then and there."  

Frank shook his head. "Marston Jacob was a coward and still is. Because if that wasn't him they buried then he's still out there hiding with his tail between his legs."  

Otis shivered. "Alive or dead, you couldn't pay me enough money to call Marston a coward."  

"We knew Marston pretty well," a grizzled voice announced from down the bar.  

Frank turned to see the dirtiest of the three men looking at him with a smile that revealed his rotting teeth beneath his matted blond beard. "Good for you," Frank hissed.  

"I think you're right about him not being dead," the man added and Frank held out a hand to stop Otis from refilling his glass for a third time.  

"You do?" Frank asked.  

"Shut-up, Shaw!" One of the smelly man's smelly friends warned.  

"What do you know?" Frank demanded, hoping this would be the break he'd been waiting for.  

A predatory grin curved Shaw's thin lips. "For the right amount of money my jaw might just loosen up a little."  

Frank dug into his pocket and pulled out a handful of coins. He dropped them on the bar and waited impatiently for Shaw as the man scooped up the coins in his dirty hands.  

"We did a lot of running with Marston, his brother Jeremiah and Duke back in the day."  

"What does that have to do with where he is now?" Frank asked impatiently.  

"I'm getting there," Shaw snapped. The two men beside him simply shook their head and stared down into their drinks. "I still see Jeremiah from time to time and sometimes I see Duke too. The strange thing about them two is that for as long as I could remember they'd never left Texas, Arizona and New Mexico. Then Marston 

died and suddenly they were making regular trips up to the Dakotas.“

Frank frowned. "How sure are you about this?"  

"Pretty sure," Shaw assured him. "They talk about a man named Jacob who has a wife named Rose and some kids Langley, Kaitlyn and Lucy, I believe is what they called them. Seems he's got himself a regular old family. I'd check the far northern Dakotas if I was looking for Marston Jacobs."  

"He won't have that family for long," Frank growled, rising from his stool.  

"What exactly are you gonna do?" Otis asked.  

Frank tossed coins on the bar to cover his whiskey. "I'm gonna go get the gang together, collect my brother and we're gonna take a trip up north. There are only a handful of towns in the Dakotas and Marston ain't the kind of man who can blend in real easy. I'm gonna find him and he's gonna watch his family die for what he did to my brother."  

Frank adjusted his hat and then stomped out of the saloon, his silver spurs singing.  

"You just signed our death warrants, you idiot!" Hobs growled at Shaw.  

Shaw shook his head. "How you got that figured?" he asked before letting out a loud belch.  

"It'll get back to Marston or Jeremiah or Duke that you ratted him out and they'll come for us! You know how those three are about each other. They claim they don't care about one another but if you mess with one you end up getting the wrath of all three!"  

"They'll never know it was us," Shaw grumbled. "Just calm the hell down."  

He took a long shaking gulp of his beer and hoped he was right.

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

Duke stretched out on his bedroll beneath the Texas stars. He folded his hands behind his head, stuck his feet closer to the small campfire and sighed. Life was good.

He was just drifting off to sleep when he heard hoof beats approaching. He rolled out of the glow of the fire, got to his knees and pulled his gun as he watched two men ride in.  

Hobs and Kilgore. He frowned. They were missing their third wheel. Shaw wasn't with them and usually the three men were attached at the gun belt.  

"Duke! Duke, we know you're there somewhere. Don't shoot us, we just wanna talk!" Hob's exclaimed in his high-pitched voice that had always reminded Duke of an overactive pup.

"I ain't much of a talker," Duke growled from the darkness and both men turned their heads in his direction, though he knew they wouldn't be able to see him.  

"Well you're gonna talk to us about this," Kilgore's raspy voice assured him.  

Duke kept his gun drawn as he stood straight and walked into the glow of firelight. "Well get to talkin' then."  

Hobs and Kilgore jumped from their horses, holding their reins in white knuckled grips while their eyes darted about nervously. "Before we talk we want you to know that we didn't have nothing to do with what happened," Hob's declared, his words pouring out so quickly they were almost simply one long word.  

Duke didn't like the sound of that. He holstered his gun and crossed his arms over his chest. "What happened that you all didn't have anything to do with?"  

"Well, see...." Hob's glanced over at Kilgore.  

"Shaw was drinking pretty heavy yesterday morning and if he hadn't been then he probably would have kept his mouth shut..."  

"...when Frank Sharp came in asking questions," Hob's finished.  

"Vincent Sharp's brother Frank?" Duke asked with a chuckle. "Did he say how his bastard of a brother was doing? Did the man die yet?"  

Kilgore shook his head. "No, but for Marston's sake..."  

"... we hope he dies soon."  

Duke felt his blood freeze at those words but he kept any sign of that from showing on his face. He feigned boredom as he shrugged. "I'd say Marston would be damned happy if Vincent died soon and joined him in hell.  He's probably got a nice little ass kicking waiting for him down there."  

Kilgore and Hob's shared a quick look. "So Marston 

is dead then?“ Kilgore asked.

"Of course he is. A man don't come back from a hanging and a stampede," Duke assured them. "He's been gone a long time."  

Hob's nodded with relief. "Good! I guess you can..."  

"...forget we showed up now," Kilgore finished.  

Duke shook his head and pulled his gun when the two men attempted to turn away. "Why don't you tell me whatever it is that you came to tell me."  

"It's.. it's not important," Hob's stammered.  

Duke's voice was cold. "Amuse me."  

Hob's swallowed hard and wrung his hands. "Frank came into The Double Decker yesterday morning and he told Otis he was looking for Marston Jacobs. Shaw'd been drinking too much...."  

"...Frank said that someone had been there when they'd buried Marston and that the man who they buried had had blue eyes instead of gold ones."  

Duke knew the men would see the shock on his face. Damn! He hadn't given a single thought to eye color when he'd found Marston's replacement. What kind of man opened a dead man's eyes just to see what color they were?

"Keep going," Duke growled. "What did Shaw say?"  

"Well see he'd been drinking," Hob's began.  

"You said that already," Duke growled.  

Kilgore nodded. "Yeah, well, uh.. he told Frank that you and Jeremiah have been making a lot of trips up to the Dakotas since Marston died."  

"He told them you go to see a man named Jacob and his family Rose, Langley, Lucy and Kaitlyn," Hob's added.  

"And what did Frank say?" Duke growled, his grip on his gun tightening.  

Hob's and Kilgore had a silent war of staring as they each waited for the other to deliver the news. Finally Hob's broke. "That he was going to get his gang together, get Vincent and go up to the northern Dakota territories to pay a visit to find Marston and kill them all... he seems pretty sure that Marston is alive."  

"That's because he is," Duke snarled.  

"He is?" they exclaimed in unison.  

"Yep." Duke cocked his revolver.  

"What are you doing, Duke?" Kilgore demanded, hopping back.  

"We can to warn you so you wouldn't kill us!" Hob's added.  

"Not good enough. You should have kept your friend quiet or killed Frank before he left that saloon. Marston is a son to me. His family is my family. You sons of bitches should have shot Frank dead since you're supposed to be loyal to me but instead you let him leave and now he has almost a two day head start in finding my family. I'm going to kill you."  

Before Hob's or Kilgore could scream, whimper or beg for their lives, Duke squeezed the trigger twice and they fell dead to the dusty ground.  

If there was one thing Duke hated it was backstabbing snitches and men who rode with them. There was an unspoken rule among outlaws. You didn't snitch and you didn't stand by and let anyone else do it either. Hell, they'd all go down if they starting turning one another in.  

Duke gathered up his belongings, emptied the dead men's pockets, took their guns and jumped on his horse. He'd left Jeremiah behind in Gringly, a few hours away, so he had to go get him and then they had to ride like hell up to Windfall to warn Marston of the trouble coming.  

Frank had a lot of friends but it would take him time to gather them all. Duke and Jeremiah had time to get there first.  

"Marston Jacobs, you're more damn trouble than you're worth," he grumbled as he started off into the night.  

Several hours later, Duke rode into Gringly. He found Jeremiah's horse hitched outside the brothel and bit back a curse. Jeremiah could very well shoot him for interrupting his fun but it had to be done.  

"What can I do for you?" a regal madam asked from behind a dainty desk.

Duke could have named a few things he'd like her to do for him but instead he cleared his throat. "I'm looking for a man."  

"If you're going to bed him, I have a few. However if it's killing you have in mind then you'll have to wait. Blood is hard to get out of the sheets," she purred as she leaned across the desk.  

Duke shook his head. "I don't have either of those things I mind, ma'am," Duke assured her, trying his best not to let his eyes drop to her large, high breasts. 

Damn that Marston!

“What’s this man’s name?” the madam asked, seeming to realize that Duke was not going respond to her suggestive body language.

"Jeremiah is his name. His horse is outside."  

"Doesn't ring a bell....." she said, tapping her chin.  

"He's around forty. About six feet tall and skinny with gold eyes..."  

"Oh yes! I remember those eyes. Quite a thing to behold. There was another man who used to come around with eyes much like his."  

Duke nodded. "He was my son. He passed on."  

The madam's eyes widened. "Sad news," she lamented. "But he was always the perfect gentleman when he was here," she winked and Duke smiled. Marston always had had way with the ladies.  

"Could you tell me what room Jeremiah is in, ma'am?"  

She nodded and pointed a long, slender finger toward the stairs. "Up the stairs, turn right, third door on the left. He's rather busy, though," she warned. "He may not like being disturbed." She laid her hand on his harm. "We could always pass a bit of time until he's finished."  

Duke bit the inside of his mouth so roughly, he tasted blood. He made a vow to punch Marston square in the face for causing him to have to pass up this opportunity and he shook his head. "I'm in a real big hurry, ma'am."  

She sighed and relaxed against her chair. "Okay then," she relented.  

Duke headed for the staircase with disappointment. He was an old man now. He was getting closer to sixty every day and he wasn't as good as he'd once been. But he had a feeling that for that madam he could have been just as good as he'd been in his younger years.  

Duke followed her directions and walked down the candlelit hallway to the third door on the left. He knocked loudly three times.  

"Who the hell is it?" Jeremiah snapped from inside.  

"Duke."  

"No offense, Duke, but go to hell."  

Duke heard the giggles of at least two separate women inside. 

Two women? Jeremiah sure wasn’t much to look at but clearly he had other things going for him if he was still entertaining multiple ladies at his age.

"Jeremiah, I hate to interrupt your fun but we have a problem with Jacob and we need to get going," Duke insisted.  

"Jacob's a big boy. He can take care of himself," Jeremiah grumbled. "I'm a bit busy getting taken care of myself so go away."  

Duke heard a feminine moan and once again he told himself that he hated the ground Marston walked on. Duke knocked again. "Jeremiah, we have some old acquaintances riding up to the Dakotas and I really think we should let Marston know they're coming before they get there. You know how the family hates surprises."  

Duke leaned his forehead against the fabric draped wall when silence followed his statement. He was tired. Old. Far too old to be staying up for days on end and staying on horseback for weeks!  

Duke knocked once more and Jeremiah roared inside. "Goddamn you, Duke!"  

Rustling movements sounded from inside the room and then Jeremiah threw open the door looking more than a little disheveled and angry. Duke glanced around Jeremiah and saw three disappointed ladies laying upon the bed in various states of undress.  

"Three!?" Duke demanded.  

Jeremiah ran his hand through his messy blond hair beginning to streak with gray and plopped his hat on his head. "Not all of us have your particular issue when we get old."  

Duke's eyes narrowed as he scratched at his beard which was more gray these days than black. "What issue would that be?" he growled, his hand hovering over his revolver.  

Jeremiah grinned and patted him on the back. "Grouchitis of course. It scares all the woman away. Now, what's wrong with my idiot brother this time?"  

Duke just shook his head and led Jeremiah from the brothel, sparing one last longing glance at the madam before stepping out into the dark. "The family's in danger."

Duke told Jeremiah everything that he knew and when he finished Jeremiah was smiling. "Well let's go warn Marston and then it can be like old times again. The three of us riding together and blasting holes in anyone that gets in our way."  

Duke chuckled. "That is if Marston still remembers what end of a revolver is the dangerous one after all this time."  

---

"No way. You can't hit those three bottles before they hit the ground, Marston," Pete argued. "I just don't believe it."  

The family was all gathered outside, taking a break from their chores. Pete had been living with Marston and his family for about a week and while he and Kaitlyn hadn't had any time alone, Pete didn't have any complaints. He simply enjoyed being around her.  

It amazed him that a man like Marston had a home that was full of as much love and laughter as Pete's house had been growing up. It awakened that youthful, carefree side of Pete that he'd worked hard to bury after the Marshall had died.  

"You sure don't know my pa, well," Langley stated in response to Pete's doubt. "He's the best damn shot in the world," he added proudly.  

"I don't know about that, Langley," Marston countered. Then he grinned as he spun the cylinder on his revolver. "But I am pretty damn good."  

"Are you men gonna quit jawin' anytime soon?" Lucy called from the porch. "Supper's ready and I'm hungry."  

At the sound of Kaitlyn's laughter, Pete's eyes quickly went to her. She was beaming and her golden hair was shimmering as it fell down her back. Her brown wool dress hugged the delicate curves of her slender body and the cold air had reddened her cheeks and nose.  

She was beautiful. An angel.  

"We'll be in just as soon as pa shows Pete which end of the revolver is which," Langley replied with a laugh.  

"I'm sure Pete knows how to shoot," Kaitlyn countered proudly. "He 

was a lawman you know.“

Marston saw the way Pete lit up with pride at Kaitlyn's faith in him. Marston hated to admit it but he was beginning to believe that Pete 

did love Kaitlyn and she loved him back. Damn, where did time go? Children weren’t supposed to grow up so fast.

Pete was awkward and clumsy and Marston had a sudden idea to see if the man might actually know how to handle a gun and protect Kaitlyn if the need arose. "I'm not going to shoot the bottles," he spoke quickly.  

"But pa!" Lucy pouted. "I wanted to watch."  

Marston's smile widened. "Pete's gonna shoot 'em."  

Pete's gaze left Kaitlyn and his eyes were wide. "I.. uh.. I am?"  

"You think you can hit all three or should I only just throw one or two?" Marston prodded, hoping to get a rise out of the man. 	

Pete's shoulder's squared but Marston could see the shakiness in his throat when he swallowed. "I can hit all three of them."  

Langley was grinning from ear to ear as Marston holstered his gun and Langley handed him the bottles. "You ready?" Langley asked.  

Pete nodded and hoped the shaking in his hand would stop. He had no idea if he could hit three airborne bottles. He knew this was a test and he didn't want to fail it. "I'm ready."  

"Alright, on the count of three pa will toss those bottles in the air and you gotta blow them all to bits before they hit the ground," Langley announced. "One. Two. Three!"  

Three bottles were launched into the air. Pete pulled his gun and fired off his shots quickly. It took five instead of just three but none of those bottles made it back to the ground in one piece.  

As applause and congratulations rang out around him, Pete stared in shock what he'd just done. He'd just pulled a miracle out of his ass!  

"You did good," Marston said as he patted Pete on the back. "You used more bullets than I would have but, you'll do."  

Pete sensed that he'd just earned another level of acceptance from Marston and he swelled with pride. Odd that he'd gone from hating Marston to wanting to earn his approval in so short a time. He knew that Kaitlyn was close to her pa and Pete wanted to ensure the man liked him to make thing better for her.  

Lucy clapped. "That was fun!"  

"He did great," Kaitlyn agreed with a bright smile.  

"You act surprised you hit them," Langley said as he came to stand beside Pete. "You didn't really think you could do it, did you? You were just trying to act tough in front of my sister."  

"No. .I uh. I knew I could do it," Pete lied.  

Marston chuckled. "Sure you did. Alright now, the womenfolk say it's time to eat so let's get this mess cleaned up and get on inside."  

The ladies walked back into the warm house and Pete felt his temper flare at being ordered around as if he were a child. If he was going to be Kaitlyn's husband one day, and he really hoped he was, then he needed to show Marston that he was a grown man and not just some kid that he could boss around.  

"Marston, can I speak to you a minute?" Pete asked as he put some distance between himself and Langley.  

Marston nodded and walked to him. "What is it?" he asked with amusement as he fished out a cigarette and lit it.  

"Look, I don't mind helping out around here especially since you're giving me a place to stay and paying me a bit for the work I do but there needs to be a certain level of respect here. I'm not a child, I'm a grown man, and I expect to be treated as such." 	

"Is that so?" Marston growled, his eyes narrowed as he stared down his nose at Pete.  

Pete damn near messed in his trousers but somehow he found the courage to nod. "Yeah, that's so."  

After several more moments of staring him down, Marston laughed loudly and slapped him on the shoulder. "You'll do just fine Pete! I was a bit worried when you first showed up in town given how much you bitched and moaned but you seem like a hardworking and honest man. You're a fair hand with a gun and respectful to the women. I know you weren't seeking my permission to pursue Kaitlyn but you have it."  

"Thank you, sir," Pete replied with a smile as he realized he had just passed yet another test.  

"Langley, you and Pete go on in and get some supper," Marston said. "I'll get this mess took care of and come in soon."  

Langley and Pete shared a look and then both shook their heads. "A man pitches in when he's needed," Pete said.  

"And sometimes even when he's not," Langley added.  

Pete grabbed an empty wooden crate beside the barn and began tossing shards of glass inside. Marston watched as Pete and Langley began cleaning the mess and couldn't help but feel proud.  

He'd done a hell of a lot of wrong in his life but he'd known that Pete was a good kid when he'd met him in that jail and sparing his life had been a good thing. And there was Langley, working hard with no arguments. Marston must have done alright by that boy as well.

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

“I think Kaitlyn may just be in love with Pete,” Rose announced that evening as she and Marston stood together at the sink washing dishes.

Langley was up in his room with his nose stuck in a book and Lucy, Pete and Kaitlyn were in the den relaxing. Marston had always enjoyed this time alone with Rose. He loved his children something fierce but being alone with his beautiful woman always made his heart feel the most at peace.

"Really?" he muttered. "I hadn't noticed."  

Rose smiled as she scrubbed at a stubborn spot of grease on her pan. "Yes, you did. How do you feel about it?"  

Marston's jaw popped. "As long as he never touches her in any way everything will be just fine."  

Rose laughed lightly. "I think he wants to marry her. They 

will have to kiss to do that.“

Marston shivered and his grip on the cup in his hand tightened dangerously. Rose laid her hand on his tense arm and patted it lightly. "Don't break my nice glass."  

Marston loosened his grip and snorted. "Then don't say things that cause my head to hurt," he retorted before pressing a tender kiss to her red curls.  

"You've been very good with Pete. You've been very warm and accepting," Rose reminded him.  

Marston sighed. "I've seen the way she looks at him and I don't want to come between that. Hell, the girl looks at him as if he's some kind of hero. She used to look at me like that."  

Rose glanced up at him and saw the sadness in his golden eyes. Emotion clogged her throat. She turned and grabbed Marston's arms, turning him to face her. She laid her hands on his broad chest and looked up into his eyes. "She still looks at you like that, Marston. You will always be special to her."  

Marston jaw tightened and Rose knew he was having a hard time expressing himself. Weakness was something Marston Jacobs didn't often show. If there had been anyone else in the kitchen, the two of them wouldn't be having this conversation. It touched Rose's heart to know that her man trusted her enough to be open with her. Raw. Honest. Weak.  

"I know she's not really mine, love," he finally whispered gruffly. "Hell, I never even knew she existed until she was eleven, but I feel like I gave life to the girl. When I pulled her out of that house, I became responsible for her and I haven't regretted it a single moment since. She is beautiful, warm and nurturing and everything that a woman should be...."  

Marston paused and Rose laid her hand on his cheek. "I sense there is a but coming."  

"What happens when Pete finds out about her past?" he ground out. "He will, at some point, and I'm terrified that my little girl is going to get hurt. What if he can't handle the truth of what happened to her as a child? What if the thought of those men being with her causes him to walk away?" Marston's eyes flashed with rage. "I know I owe him for what he did for me but, Rose, if he hurts her I'll kill him. So help me God, I'll kill him so slow....."  

Rose cut off his rant by pressing a soft kiss to the corner of his mouth. The anger in his eyes was quickly replaced by passion but it was the love shining out at her that stole Rose's breath the most. Even after all the years and everything they'd been through, when Marston looked at her like that, the world stopped turning.  

"Marston, Kaitlyn and I share the same past. Did you turn away from me?"  

Marston shook his head and stooped down to nuzzle her neck before resting his cheek against hers. "I couldn't have. You are my soul mate and the only thing in this whole world I couldn't live without. Nothing would ever make me turn away from you. Living without you would be like trying to breathe underwater; I'd end up dead." He looked into her eyes. "Besides, my past isn't all sunshine and clear skies and you accepted me."  

Rose ran her hand through his thick brown hair and smiled. "Exactly. Pete might just love our daughter the same way that you love me."  

Marston let out a growl that was a mixture of frustration and defeat. He brought himself up to his full height and grumbled. "I hate that you're right all the time."  

"Not all the time," Rose countered with a smile. "Just every time you're wrong." Marston chuckled and kissed her brow. "Now, let's get these dishes washed. There's no telling what Pete and Kaitlyn might be doing in that den with only Lucy for supervision."  

	Rose was unable to hold back her laughter when a look of horror filled Marston's face and he began drying dishes at a much faster pace.  

---

"What you did with those bottles today was very impressive," Kaitlyn said as she sat beside Pete on the sofa.  

Pete gave a little laugh, though he was cursing the two feet of space separating their bodies. "It was all luck," he admitted.  

Kaitlyn smiled, curled her legs beside her and smoothed out her skirt. "There had to be some skill involved."  

Pete shrugged. "Maybe... a little. But it was mostly luck."  

Kaitlyn smiled as she lay her head back on the cushion. Pete wanted to think of some excuse to scoot closer to her. He tried to think of some reason to hold her hand in his. Nothing came—and he 

had promised not to push her so he needed to wait for her to come to him.

Damn! He wanted to keep his word but he hadn't realized the going would be quite this slow! He hadn't even held her hand since his first day here. Did the woman realize what she was doing to him? He wanted, needed, to hold her and have her close to him.  

Kaitlyn picked at her skirt. "Langley told me that you stood up to pa."  

Pete scratched at a callous on his thumb. "Yeah, that's right." He wondered if she'd be angry and he wished Langley had kept his overactive mouth shut.  

A smile curved Kaitlyn's lips. "I'm proud of you and I know that had to have impressed my pa. He likes you, you know."  

"I don't usually are about impressing people but I want him to like me. I know how important your pa is to you."  

Kaitlyn smiled and Pete felt the thrill of victory when she scooted closer and he was able to drape his arm around her shoulders. She laid her head on his shoulder and sighed. "I have really enjoyed this week, Pete."  

Being held like this in his arms felt good. Right. She was safe and warm and she had forgotten the peace his arms seemed to bring her. Kaitlyn had never in her life thought he would find any man's touch comforting but Pete's was.  

"I've enjoyed it too, honey," he replied, barely managing to keep from kissing her hair.  

"How is your side?"  

"Doing fine," Pete assured her.  

Kaitlyn shifted her body and grabbed the bottom of his oversized cotton shirt. She lifted it and Pete fought back the wave of passion that blindsided him as her fingertips brushed against his bare skin and she lifted the edge of the bandage to show the healing skin below.  

"See, I told you it was fine," he quickly stated as he yanked his shirt back down. Apparently Kaitlyn didn't realize what her touch did to him or how hard it made it for him to remember that he had promised not to rush her—all he wanted right now was to kiss the woman senseless.  

"What about your arm?" she questioned and Pete hoped he wasn't only imagining the breathlessness in her voice. Surely he wasn't the only one reeling from the skin on skin contact.  

"Fine," Pete somehow managed to croak out.  

Kaitlyn lifted the bandage to reveal the healing wound beneath. "It looks much better."  

"I had a good doctor."  

Kaitlyn heard the husky tone in his voice and it was one she recognized. She'd heard it as a young girl in men's voices and repeated over and over in her nightmares since. That sound had always terrified her....

Until she'd heard Pete's voice filled with that want. Hearing Pete caused her to tingle down low and she shifted on the cushioned sofa.  

Kaitlyn was faintly aware of his fingertips coming up to her cheek, dancing across her skin. Their eyes locked and Kaitlyn wondered what he was thinking. She would swear the man was looking inside of her. Seeing her deepest secrets. The things she never wanted him to see.  

"Are you two gonna kiss?" Lucy spoke up from her place by the fire. "Cuz when pa looks at mama like that, he usually kisses her. I need to cover my dolly's eyes if you are."

Pete was about to Lucy to get to covering. All he wanted was to know what Kaitlyn's lips would feel like against his own. What she tasted like.

Then he saw her green eyes widen with fear.  She jerked away from him, breaking all contact between their bodies and Pete was left feeling cold. Her chin was trembling as she stared at the floor and twisted the ends of her hair around her finger.  

Pete sighed. So, hugs were okay. Hand holding, not a problem. The thought of kissing him, however, was definitely an issue. He had promised to go slow and be patient, and he knew he would continue to do so, he just hadn't realized quite how hard keeping that promise would be.  

It hurt to not be trusted by the woman you loved. The woman you wouldn't hurt for anything in the world.  

"Are you okay?" he asked gently.  

She didn't look at him. "Yes, I'm fine," she whispered, her voice shaking nearly as badly as her hands.  

He held out his arm. "Come here please." He wanted her back in his embrace. She shook her head but he wasn't giving up that easily. "Come on, Kaitlyn. I just want to put my arm around you and I'll be on my best behavior. You have a wanted lawman's word on that."  

Those words did the trick and had Kaitlyn's lips curving in the smallest of smiles. She moved back to him and leaned into his embrace, laying her head upon his shoulder. "I'm sorry about that," she said softly as they watched Lucy's doll laying kisses on Creed's big, wet nose. The hound merely opened one tired eye, let out a sigh and went back to sleep.  

"It's not your fault I'm a wanted lawman," Pete replied. "I just make all the other lawmen jealous with my good looks and charm."  

Kaitlyn's laughter warmed his heart. She raised her head so she could look into his eyes. "I mean I'm sorry for...."  

Pete silenced her by shaking his head. "I know what you meant. You don't have to be sorry, honey. The funny thing about fear is you can't control it and you can't turn it off. One day you'll trust me."

Kaitlyn wanted to argue that she trusted him but knew she couldn't. While she did trust him partially and knew he would never harm her, she couldn't trust him with the truth about her past—or with her body—neither were things she was willing to risk.  

"Maybe someday you'll even tell me why you're scared," he added in a whisper that only she could hear.  

Kaitlyn felt fear filling her once again. Fear that if Pete knew the truth he would walk away from her. "How about a poker rematch?" she asked, desperate for anything to change the subject.  

Pete bit the inside of his cheek in frustration. He forced a smile. "Sure. We'll need some cards."  

Kaitlyn stood and went to a small table beside an armchair. She opened a drawer and pulled out a deck of cards. "Uncle Jeremiah brings us at least two decks every time he comes. He wants to make sure we know the ins and outs of gambling because he says it's an easier way to make a living than the way our pa is teaching us."  

"And how exactly is Marston teaching you?" Pete asked as he sat sideways on the sofa and Kaitlyn sat at the other end and began shuffling.  

"He teaches us to work for what we want. He pays us for any extra work we do around here, he has Langley help him in the gun shop and he's the one who encouraged me to begin to study with the doc. He wants us all to know some kind of trade or occupation."  

Pete chuckled. "An outlaw reformed."  

"You could say that," Kaitlyn grinned. "Just don't tell him."  

"Don't tell who what?" Marston asked as he came into the room.  

"Don't tell you that you're a outlaw free formed," Lucy replied with a beaming smile before hugging her doll.  

Marston was grinning as he sat down on the other sofa. "Am I insulted, flattered or saddened by being a free-formed outlaw?"  

"An outlaw reformed is actually what you are," Kaitlyn informed him.  

Marston simply nodded. "Not really, but you all can believe what you want." Rose gathered up a bag of sewing and sat down beside him.  

Pete watched Marston as he sharpened his knife. The same knife he had killed Marshall Montgomery with all those years ago. Pete recognized the handle. Pete knew that knife was sharp enough to slice through human flesh like warm butter.  

He shivered and focused on the card game he and Kaitlyn were playing. Langley joined the family after a while with a book in his hands.  

Pete realized that he den was full of warmth, love and laughter. It had everything a family home should have. Pete hadn't realized just how badly he'd missed the sense of belonging to a family until he'd come here. Who would have thought that Marston Jacobs—outlaw, murderer, thief and all around bad guy—would be the one to show Pete was a real man was.  

A real man took care of business. Be it kissing away a hurt on his five year old daughter, helping his wife with the dishes, teaching his son responsibility, knocking some sense into the man who made his daughter cry or cutting the heart out of a man who threatened his family. A man did what had to be done.  

The world was not black and white the way Pete had once believed it was. Men were not simply good or bad.  Marston Jacobs was proof of that.

---

Pete was lying in his bed that night simply staring up at the ceiling and unable to find sleep. He wanted to join Kaitlyn upstairs. He wanted to hold her in his arms the way he had that night at the doctor's. That had been the most peaceful night of sleep he had ever had.  

But he couldn't do that... while Kaitlyn may trust him enough to let him if he asked, Pete couldn't bring himself to do something that risky under Marston's roof. He had no doubt that Marston would shoot him if he was caught sneaking into Kaitlyn's room and Pete knew he'd be caught. He had a feeling that no one made a move in this house without that outlaw knowing about it.  

Pete closed his eyes and begged sleep to come. He was about to smother himself with his pillow when he heard someone come into the kitchen.  

He could hear soft sobbing and then a glass was filled with water. Worried that Kaitlyn might have had another nightmare, Pete stood up, tugged on his trousers, rubbed at his bare stomach and stepped out of his room.  

Instantly, he realized it wasn't Kaitlyn standing with her head pressed tightly against the cabinets, but Rose in a faded white nightdress.  

Her red curls were tumbling messily down her back and she was gripping the counter desperately as she took in long, deep breaths.  

"Are you okay?" Pete asked.  

Rose yelped and spun around with her hand on his heart. "You scared me!"  

He grinned sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I wasn't sleeping and I heard you come in. I thought it might have been Kaitlyn."  

Rose smiled knowingly, her eyes red-rimmed from the tears she'd been crying. "I didn't meant to disturb you, Pete."  

Pete thought she seemed embarrassed as she swiped her hands over her cheeks to dry them. "Where's Marston?" he asked.  

Rose waved her hand. "I told him to stay in bed and rest. It was only a bad dream."  

Pete frowned. "And he listened?"  

"No, he didn't," Marston growled as he strode into the kitchen. Pete was taken aback as a shirtless Marston crossed the kitchen in only a few long strides and pulled Rose into his arms. She buried her face in his chest and held onto him tightly.  

Pete's eyes became locked on Marston's back. The Marshall's handiwork was etched deeply there in the form of raised scars and puckered skin. Not an inch of Marston's back didn't wear some sign of Marshall Montgomery's anger—but Pete figured it was okay since Marston was in better shape than the Marshall was in these days.  

Rose pulled away and looked up at her husband. "Marston, please go to bed."  

Marston growled, glanced back at Pete and turned his attention back to Rose. "I won't let you stay down here alone and think about those things."  

"I'm not alone," Rose assured him. "Pete will keep me company. Won't you, Pete?"

Pete shrugged as Marston turned to face him. "Sure. I wasn't sleeping anyhow."  

Marston's eyes narrowed. "Marston, really, I'm fine." Rose said sternly. "Just go up to bed and I'll be there soon."  

Marston grumbled under his breath. "Okay." He kissed her head, threw a warning glance in Pete's direction and stormed from the room.  

"Well, have a seat, Pete," Rose said, motioning toward the table.  

Pete hoped he wasn't going to die tomorrow for stepping on Marston's toes tonight. He went to an empty chair and sat down.  

Rose poured a second glass of water, refilled her own and carried both to the table. She placed the new glass in front of Pete before sitting down across from him. "You're healing up now. What are your plans for the future, Pete?"  

Pete shrugged as he sipped at the water. He thought they'd talk about Rose, he hadn't thought the conversation would be about him. "I know what I'd like to have happen, ma'am, but whether or not it will is the million dollar question."  

"Call me Rose, please. And I'm sure whatever you're hoping for will happen for you," she assured him comfortingly.  

Pete simply shrugged again as he watched her lift her glass to her lips. He realized her hands were trembling. "You have nightmares too?" he asked.  

Rose frowned. "What do you mean too? Do you have them?"  

Pete was confused. "No. I meant do you have them like Kaitlyn."  

Rose seemed more confused. "Kaitlyn has nightmares?"  

"Well she had a couple while she was at the doc's." Pete shifted in his seat. "She says she has them a lot."  

"She never told me about them," Rose replied with a hint of sadness.  

"She wouldn't tell me about them either." Pete took another drink. "I heard her having them and woke her up. I tried to get her to tell me about them but she just acted afraid."  

Rose's gaze went down to the tabletop. "I'm sure her dreams are terrible."  

Silence reigned a moment before Rose finally lifted her gaze back to him. "You care about her a lot, don't you?"  

"Yes ma'am..." Pete grinned. "I mean Rose."  

Her touch was warm—motherly—as she reached across the table and patted his hand. "She cares for you too. She is always talking about you and she smiles when she does."  

"She's scared of me," Pete admitted with a sigh as he stared down into the clear liquid in his cup. "Or at least she is if I try to do anything more than hold her hand."  

Pete realized what he'd just said and his head snapped up. "Uh.. I mean... that is..."  

Rose was laughing as she gave his arm a squeeze and moved her hands back to her cup. "You don't have to watch what you say around me. I'm not nearly as overprotective as Marston. You should know that after what you did for us, I consider you family, Pete."

"I was only doing what I thought was right," Pete replied.  

Rose was quiet a moment and Pete got the impression that she was searching hard for the words she wanted to say. Finally she swallowed hard and looked at him. "It's not you that Kaitlyn is afraid of. It's the memories."  

"Yeah, but memories of what?" Pete grumbled with frustration. "I'm smart enough to know that something real bad happened to her but surely she knows that I'd never hurt her. Surely she knows that she can trust me."  

Rose bit her lip, clearly conflicted. "If you're not in a hurry to get to bed, I could tell you a story about my past."  

Pete had no idea why telling a story about herself would help Pete understand Kaitlyn but he liked Rose and she had been good to him while he'd been staying here so he'd humor her. "I'm not a bit sleepy."  

Rose's eyes became focused on the wall behind his head as she began to speak. "I don't remember my birth parents. I grew up in an orphanage in Louisiana. There was food in my stomach and a roof over my head but little else could be found in that place. When I was ten years old, I was adopted. I felt so lucky, so blessed, to have been picked over all the other children there. Only a few short months later I learned what kind of man my adoptive father truly was."  

Rose let out a shaking sigh. "I didn't understand what the first man wanted when he showed up. He spoke nice enough to me but then he began to take off his clothes."  

Rose paused, her breaths coming deeper as she obviously fought to calm herself. Pete's fists clenched as he realized what had happened to Rose as such a young age. "Rose..." he began but she held up her hand.  

Her face was pale but she seemed determined. "You need to hear this," she insisted. Pete took a drink of his water and leaned back in his chair. "That was my first experience with a man and after it was over my father and the man were arguing over the payment that was due for my services. I still didn't understand what was happening. What I did understand as the fear and the pain. I vomited on the floor. Once my father and I were alone again, he dragged me out into the snow and whipped me—yes with a whip," she assured him when Pete's eyes widened. "That was my life for nearly six years until my first husband found me, bought me from my father and saved me from that life."  

Pete had no idea what a man was supposed to say after hearing something like that. "I'm sorry that happened to you," he offered.  

Rose's smile was a sad one as she sipped her water. "My adoptive father's name was Gilliam Montgomery."  

Pete gasped. "The man that Marston murdered?"  

"Yes."  

Pete recalled the story about the shape Gilliam's body had been in. Whipped, beaten, stabbed and left nearly unrecognizable. "I understand why Marston did what he did."  

Rose tipped her head. "Do you remember what other charges Marston was arrested for that day? The charge that got swept under the rug and forgotten in Marshall Montgomery's mission to have vengeance for his brother?"  

Pete thought back. It had been a while but he remembered just about everything from Marston's arrest because it had had such a big impact on his life. "I believe it was kidnapping. Though, I never did hear anything else about that once Marston was brought in."  

"There was a girl in that cabin when Marston showed up. A girl who was only eleven. She was laying bloody and battered in the bed. She was skinny, dirty and unclothed. Gilliam and Vincent were arguing over a payment owed."

Anger burned in Pete's gut. "I can guess that payment was for," he hissed. The thought of any man hurting a girl was nearly more than Pete could handle. It made him understand how a good man could become a murderer in the blink of an eye.

Rose nodded. "The girl had been with Gilliam for around a year and he had adopted her too. She had no family, no friends and nowhere to go. So, Marston brought her home."  

Pete's heart slammed to a stop in his chest. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"  

Rose stood and walked around the table to lay a gentle hand on Pete's shoulder. "Marston is very overprotective of Kaitlyn because of the situation he found her in. I thought that knowing a little about where she came to us from might help you understand her fear."

Pete simply stared down at the table. "I had no idea it was that bad."  

"If you love her the way I think you do then be patient with her—just the same as Marston was patient with me. One day she will be ready, Pete, and you'll be glad that you suffered though the fear with her because your bond will be that much stronger."  

Pete didn't respond as he tried to wrap his head around the hell his angel had lived. Rose's footsteps faded as she left the room.  

Pete was filled with a helpless rage. What he wanted was vengeance for Kaitlyn. He wanted to kill every man who had ever hurt her. He wanted to kill Gilliam for putting her in that kind of life. But Marston had beat him to that and there was nothing else Pete could do unless he wanted to dig the rotting bastard up and put one more bullet in him for good measure.  

Pete stood from the table and poured out his and Rose's glasses of water. He killed the light she had lit and went back to his room. As he lay down upon his bed, Pete understood Kaitlyn's fear for the first time. He vowed that he would be the one to teach her that what happened between a man and a woman could be great. He loved her. He wanted her. Only her. He'd wait for however long it took.

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Jeremiah and Duke had been riding nearly nonstop for days. They knew they were well ahead of Frank and they wanted to keep it that way. Jeremiah glanced over at Duke and felt a moment of worry for the older man. He looked exhausted. Duke was getting too old for this life but Jeremiah wasn’t going to be the one that told him that.

He'd end up with a bullet in his ass for sure.  

"Hell Duke, one of us oughta settle down in Windfall with Marston," Jeremiah noted. "That way someone'll be there to protect his ass all the time."  

Duke scanned the Kansas plains they were traveling. "Hell, settling down ain't no kind of life for me. I thought about it once and changed my mind."  

"You did?" Jeremiah was surprised. Duke only nodded but said nothing else. "Me either, I reckon," Jeremiah grinned. "I tried settling down in Windfall once and that didn't work too good for me."  

"Nope. I believe I remember that you got shot for your efforts," Duke replied with a chuckle.  

"Hell, if my good for nothing brother didn't shoot me at least once a year, I'd start to think he didn't love me anymore."

"I've noticed that you haven't shot him in a while," Duke stated.  

Jeremiah shook his head and stuck a bit of tobacco in his lip. "I get tired of hearing him whine about it every time." He grinned. "That and Rose doesn't really like it when I shoot him."  

"That Rose is something else," Duke admitted, his eyes taking on a distant look. "Being around her makes me think about things. Life."  

Duke and Jeremiah rode in silence a while longer and then Duke pointed out across the plains. "Hey is that who I think it is?"  

Jeremiah followed his gaze and felt anger burn in his gut when he recognized Shaw sitting beside a small fire. "Well, I'll be damned. What's that little rat doing this far north?"  

"Running from us, I'd imagine," Duke growled.  

"Well he didn't run fast enough, did he?" Jeremiah mused. Then he smiled. "You got the first two. This one's mine."  

Duke mumbled his disappointment and then motioned for Jeremiah to go ahead. With an easy grin on his face, Jeremiah rode ahead of Duke and directly into Shaw's camp. When Shaw saw him, he instantly went for his gun.  

Jeremiah clicked his tongue. "Why in the world do you want to shoot me?" He winked. "Why I ain't seen you in a long time but we were getting along the last time we parted ways."  

Shaw was clearly confused as Jeremiah hopped off his horse and sat down beside him on the log. "Of course we're gettin' along," Shaw agreed.  

Jeremiah dug around in his pocket and pulled out a bag of tobacco. "You want a chew?" he offered.  

Shaw's hands were trembling as he took the pouch and pinched out a bit of tobacco. Jeremiah pocketed the pouch and stared into the small fire. "We was always friends, Shaw. I liked you."  

Desperation filled Shaw's features. "I like you too, Jeremiah."  

The easy smile never left Jeremiah's face. "But Marston's my brother and he's not some rat bastard that drinks too much and runs his mouth."  

"But I..." Shaw's mouth continued to work up and down though no words formed.  

Jeremiah shook his head. "Goodbye Shaw."  

He pulled his knife and twisted sideways, driving the blade deep into Shaw's gut and dragging it across him, leaving a gaping hole.  

Shaw's eyes widened. His skin paled. He screamed in pain and tried to shove his insides back in. Blood pooled around his body as he fell to the ground. Jeremiah wiped his knife off on Shaw's shift and grinned down at the man. "Hopefully you'll bleed to death before the ants get you."  

"Damn Jeremiah, don't you think you should finish him off?" Duke asked when Jeremiah returned to his side and his horse sidestepped nervously at the screams coming from the dying man.  

"No. Sure don't."  

Duke shrugged. "Fair enough."  

---

Kaitlyn stood from her bed and stretched her arms above her head. She had had another one of her nightmares during the night but somehow this nightmare had changed and become pleasant dreams of Pete.  

His warm brown eyes. His boyish smile. His dimple. How warm and protected she always felt in his embrace.  

Kaitlyn smiled as she glanced out her window but that quickly turned to a frown as she remembered the evening before and the disappointment that Pete had showed when she had been unable to kiss him. Kaitlyn knew that Pete had tried hard to hide it with a smile but she'd seen his disappointment and his hurt.  

Kaitlyn began to make up her bed. How could she open up to Pete? How could she tell him the truth about her past? He would walk away from her. What kind of man could love a whore? Pete would certainly never marry one.  

Kaitlyn wondered if she wanted to marry Pete and quickly realized the answer was yes. She enjoyed being around him, she enjoyed his presence in her life and he brought a peace to her—but also a pain. She was damaged, broken, covered in scars....She had laid with dozens of men. And if Pete knew, she would lose him. 	

Kaitlyn fought back tears and stared up at the ceiling. Was it fair of her to hold onto him? Pete needed to move on. He couldn't be content with the relationship they had.  

A knock on the door brought Kaitlyn out of her self-pitying thoughts. Kaitlyn pulled on her robe and told the knocker to come in. She smiled but was a bit surprised when her mama entered the room, closing the door behind her.  

"Good morning, mama," Kaitlyn greeted, wondering what brought her mama up so early. She was always busy this time of the morning, cooking breakfast for the family.  

"Good morning," Rose replied, tugging on the sleeve of her blouse.  

Kaitlyn realized that her mama was nervous. "I was hoping we could talk, Kaitlyn."

Kaitlyn's pulse thundered with alarm. "Is something wrong?"  

Rose shook her head and grabbed Kaitlyn's comb from the dresser. She sat down and patted the edge of the bed beside her. Kaitlyn sat down beside her and suddenly she felt eleven years old again as her mama began brushing out her hair.  

"I talked to Pete last night," Rose admitted.  

"When?" Kaitlyn asked with a frown.  

"It was the middle of the night," Rose replied. "I had a nightmare and was in the kitchen getting a drink of water. He thought I was you and came out to comfort me."  

Kaitlyn's heart skipped a beat. "He did?" That man was amazing. More amazing than what she deserved.  

"Yes. He said he thought it was you because you have nightmares. Kaitlyn, why didn't you tell me about the nightmares?"  

Kaitlyn bit her trembling lip while Rose continued to run the comb through her long golden hair. "They're not that bad," she lied.  

Rose tossed the comb on the bed and turned Kaitlyn to face her. "Pete said you had at least two at the doc's and you weren't there that long. How often do you have these nightmares?"  

Kaitlyn stared down at her hands folded upon her lap. "Nearly every night."  

"I thought that you and I were close, sweetheart," Rose whispered sadly. "I know I'm not really your mama but..."

"You're the only mama I've ever known," Kaitlyn quickly argued.  

Rose put her finger under her chin and gently lifted her head. "Then why didn't you tell me about your dreams? Of all the people in this world, I understand what you see. I would have listened and we might have been able to help one another."  

"I have no right to complain to you about any of that!" Kaitlyn exclaimed as she stood up and began pacing.  

Rose's heart broke to see her daughter hurting. Kaitlyn had been holding things in for far too long. "It's not complaining, Kaitlyn. It's opening up and allowing someone to help you heal. And what better person to begin that process with than someone who knows exactly what you went through?"

"I have no right to whine about what I went through to you, mama! Not when you had it so much worse than I did!"  

Rose sat in silence, shocked by Kaitlyn's words. Finally she recovered, stood from the bed and took Kaitlyn by the shoulders, stopping the girl's pacing. "Kaitlyn, there is no better or worse in this situation," she stated sternly.  

"Yes, there is," Kaitlyn replied, tears filling her eyes. "Look how long he had you! I was only there a year."  

Rose felt her own eyes moisten. She pulled Kaitlyn's slender body against her chest and Kaitlyn sobbed into her shoulder. "You listen to me right now, Kaitlyn. There is no one that had it any worse or any better. What happened to us was not right and it was not fair. Yes, you got out quicker than I did and I thank God for that every single day but that does not mean that you had it any easier."  

Kaitlyn sobbed against Rose for a long while and Rose simply stood there patiently stroking her back. It was the first time that Kaitlyn had shed any tears with Rose about her past. It was the first time that Rose was seeing any emotion at all out of the girl about that time in her life.  

The release was long overdue, Rose decided. Kaitlyn needed to let go of the pain if she was going to move on and start a life with Pete. The man loved her something fierce and Kaitlyn needed a clear head to see that.  

"I was so scared back then," Kaitlyn whispered hoarsely. "I hated my life so badly and I only wanted to die. Every day I wanted to die so that I wouldn't have to hurt anymore. The way they touched me....."  

The women let out identical shivers.  

"We survived, Kaitlyn," Rose replied softly. "That's all that matters."  

Kaitlyn pulled away and wiped her face clean on her robe. "Did you and Pete talk long last night?" she asked, desperate to change the subject.  

Rose shook her head as she sat back down upon the bed and Kaitlyn sat beside her. "Not too long. He wanted to know why I had nightmares and so I shared a little with him."  

"You told him about Gilliam?" Kaitlyn demanded.  

Rose nodded, knowing her daughter would probably be a little angry with her. She didn't feel guilty for what she had said to Pete. Pete had needed to hear everything that she had told him and Kaitlyn had clearly been in no shape to tell the man. "I told him about my life with Gilliam and I told him how you came to live with us. I let him know that Marston found you there the night he killed Gilliam."  

Betrayal so intense it stole Kaitlyn's breath coursed through her and she leapt to her feet. "Mama why?" she gasped. "He's smart enough to know that if all of that happened to you then it happened to me too."  

"He probably is," Rose replied calmly.  

"I can't believe you did that!" Kaitlyn cried, throwing her hands in the air. "He's probably long gone this morning and running away as fast as his legs can carry him!"  

Kaitlyn wrapped her arms tight around herself and went to the window, staring out over the snowy plains. Silence lay heavy over the room and Kaitlyn's pain was tangible. The man she loved was gone and it was her mama's fault.  

Rose sighed heavily and came to stand beside Kaitlyn. She laid her hand on her shoulder. "Pete isn't gone, sweetheart. He's downstairs watching the bacon. That man loves you and he's hurting because you won't open up to him and so I just told him enough so he would understand better why you have fear. I only wanted to give him guidance."  

"He's still here?" Kaitlyn whispered. 

‘Did he actually say that he still loves me?’ she added silently.

"Of course he is. Why would you think he'd be gone?" Rose asked with curiosity.  

"Because I'm a whore," Kaitlyn replied bluntly. "What kind of man would love and stay with a whore who had laid with dozens of men?"  

Rose's blue eyes filled with shock, then hurt, then indignation. She took a step back and tossed her hair. "Kaitlyn Jacobs...Marston...whatever the hell we decided our last name was! How dare you call me a whore!"  

Kaitlyn shook her head with earnest. "I would never call you something like that, mama!"

"Well you've said yourself that I was with Gilliam longer than you were so that has to mean I've laid with more men. If being forced to lay with those men makes you a whore than it makes me one too."  

"Mama, no..." Kaitlyn wrung her hands. Oh, that wasn't what she had meant at all! Rose was the kindest, gentlest and most loving woman in the world. She had taken Kaitlyn in without any question or hesitation. She loved pa despite his past, she accepted their outlaw uncles, she helped anyone who ever needed help. Rose was an angel—there was no way the woman could ever be considered a whore.  

Rose smiled and laid her hand on Kaitlyn's cheek. "Don't you see how foolish you sound when you say such things about yourself? What happened to you was not your fault and it doesn't change the amazing woman that you have turned into. You are bright, smart and you heal the sick. That man downstairs is in love with you, Kaitlyn."  

Kaitlyn shook her head and Rose's eyes narrowed. "Don't you shake your head at me, Kaitlyn. He loves you just the same as your pa loves me and he'll keep on loving you no matter what you tell him about your past, but honey, you have to tell him. You can't keep that secret between you."  

Kaitlyn's eyes went to the floor. "I know mama.. it's just.. I can't give him what another woman could. He deserves more than me. Just the thought of kissing him fills me with a fear so deep I want to run away."  

Rose sighed and hugged her once again. "I know. Trust me, I know. But you are a woman worthy of great love, Kaitlyn, and I'm sure that Pete would argue that there is no one better than you. Your family loves you, your man loves you, now you just have to love you too." Rose gently poked her nose. "And Pete will be waiting patiently for you. I'm a smart woman, I know these things."  

Kaitlyn looked into her mother's eyes and nodded. "I'll try."  

Rose kissed her brow. "That's all you can do. Please, from now on, don't hesitate to come to me. I'm your mother and that's what I'm here for."  

"Yes ma'am," Kaitlyn whispered, exhausted by the emotional gauntlet she'd already run that morning.  

"Good. Now I have to get back down to the kitchen and save breakfast because I have a feeling that cooking probably isn't Pete's strongest talent." Rose smiled and left the room, closing the door behind her and leaving Kaitlyn alone with her thoughts.  

Kaitlyn collapsed upon her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She longed to do nothing more than curl back up under the covers and sleep the day away. She had nearly convinced herself to do just that when there was another knock at the door.  

Kaitlyn wondered if it could be Pete and she smoothed out her hair as she stood up. "Come in."  

Much to her surprise, Langley stepped inside. "What are you doing?" she asked.  

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and his skin reddened beneath his freckles. "I wanted to let you know that I approve of Pete. He really seems to care about you, he's respectful to mama, he's learning how to handle pa, he plays with Lucy, he's a fair hand with a gun, he's good with horses and he works hard."  

Kaitlyn attempted to take in everything her brother had just said. Langley shrugged. "I think you should marry him."  

Kaitlyn's jaw dropped. "Langley, I..."  

Langley held up his hand to cut her off. "I don't want to have a heart to heart chat. I'd much rather go back to the days when I was stealing your dolls and your sewing and you were chasing me through the house and yelling for pa." He grinned as he stepped back out the door. "I just wanted to let you know that Pete passed the difficult brother's inspection."  

Kaitlyn once again found herself alone but this time she was smiling and no longer felt quite so tired.

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

Kaitlyn’s nerves were eating a hole through her stomach as she readied herself to go down and face Pete. She slipped into her brown wool skirt and yellow blouse. She rolled her long golden hair onto the back of her head and secured it with several pins.

Kaitlyn stared at herself in the mirror and attempted to see herself as a man would. She knew that she had a pretty face but her body was that of a boy. She had no real curves to speak of and Kaitlyn had always been okay with that in the past because she hadn't wanted men desiring her.  

 The dissatisfaction she was now feeling while looking at herself probably came from her feelings for Pete. She wanted him to look at her. She wanted to be enough for him.  

Kaitlyn knew she was stalling for time. She was nervous about walking into the kitchen. Pete might still be here and he might love her but would he still see the her he had seen before or would he now see her as broken, the way she saw herself.  

There was only one way she would ever know.  

Kaitlyn took a deep breath, squared her shoulders and marched out of room, down the stairs and toward the kitchen. "Mama, you burned the bacon," she heard Lucy scold.  

"Actually, Lucy, that was me," Pete's warm voice caused a pleasant, tingling to work its way down Kaitlyn's spine. "I never was much of a cook."  

"That's alright," Langley's voice chimed in. "You should eat pa's eggs sometime."  

"We can't all be perfect," Marston intoned dryly.  

Kaitlyn stepped into the kitchen just in time to see her mama set a large bowl of steaming oatmeal and peaches on the already food laden table. Langley was sitting in a chair with his long legs stretched out in front of him while her pa was sitting in another, cradling Lucy's doll in his arms while Lucy went about getting a small spoonful of oatmeal.  

"Hold her head up, pa, so she doesn't get choked," Lucy ordered impatiently. It was clear that Marston was doing his best to hide his amusement as he adjusted the doll.  

Finally Kaitlyn let her eyes fall on Pete. He was standing at the counter across the room and he was staring at her intently. She shifted under his gaze but forced herself to meet his eyes. Kaitlyn searched them for any sign that he was disgusted or regretful to know her but found none. Pete was still looking at her with all the love and warmth that he had been since he'd woken up at the doc's.  

Pete smiled, his dimple deepening in his cheek as he crossed the room to her with long, purposeful strides. Kaitlyn felt her knees begin to shake and fought the urge to move—but whether she was wanting to run away from him or to him, she couldn't have said.  

Kaitlyn swallowed hard and nearly collapsed right there upon the floor when he stopped mere inches away and ran his knuckles tenderly down her cheek. "Good morning," he whispered huskily.  

Kaitlyn licked her trembling lip. "Good morning," she replied, surprised to find herself leaning into his touch. The rest of the room seemed to fade away and all Kaitlyn could see was Pete.  

"Are you hungry?" he asked as he let his hand fall. "I burned the bacon." Kaitlyn relaxed at the sight of his grin and the tone of his teasing. Her tension and uncertainties faded instantly when he took her hand in his and led her to the table.  

When he pulled out her chair and then pushed her into the table, Kaitlyn couldn't help but smile. She should have known her mama was right. Maybe, just maybe, things would work out with Pete.  

If anyone knew about healing, it would be Rose.  

---

“Pa, I would like to go into town today and visit with the doc. I haven’t been in over a week,” Kaitlyn stated later that morning as she stepped into the barn.

Marston wiped his sweaty brow on his shirt sleeve and leaned against his rake. "I have too much to do here today. I don't think I can take you, Kaitlyn. Not unless you want to wait until this afternoon." he said regretfully. He always hated not being able to give his family something they wanted.  

"I'll take her," Pete spoke up quickly when he noticed her disappointment. "I need to get some things in town anyhow."

Marston glanced back and forth between them, his hand tightened on the rake handle. Finally he nodded. "Fine. But you won't be able to take the cart. The snow is melting and the road is a mess."

"She can ride with me," Pete offered.  

Kaitlyn's first instinct was to state that she would ride her own horse but then her mama's words came back to her. 

‘Trust him.’ Kaitlyn would never begin to get over her fears if she didn’t first face them. Riding on a horse with Pete all the way to town would certainly push the boundaries on her fear of intimacy.

"I can ride with him," she agreed and she couldn't help but blush when she saw Pete's happy smile.  

Marston grumbled and Pete feared that rake in his hands might break. "Fine, but take Buck."  

---

So, Pete had been wrong. He'd thought that he'd won yet another of life's little victories when Kaitlyn had agreed to ride his horse with him to town. Nope. Not a victory. This was torture!  

All he wanted to do was stop this horse, pull Kaitlyn around him, hold her in his lap and kiss her until she was breathlessly begging him to stop. He wanted, 

needed , her touch to ease the constant fire that was burning in his blood for her.

Feeling her head resting against his back while her arms were wrapped tight around his middle was nearly more than Pete could stand. An awkward silence hovered over them for the first part of the trip. Pete wanted to talk about what he'd learned about her past but didn't know how to bring it up.  

"Hey, look over there," Pete said as he brought Buck to a stop and pointed across the plains at the group of deer grazing peacefully.  

"It's so beautiful," Kaitlyn whispered, taking in the scene.  

"Yeah," Pete agreed, glancing behind him at her snow reddened face. Her large bonnet kept most of her features hidden from him but he could see her tiny nose and dainty chin.  

Kaitlyn seemed to sense that he was looking at her and she turned to him with the most dazzling smile Pete had ever seen. As a matter of fact, it dazzled him so much, he nearly fell out of the saddle.  

"You are beautiful," he whispered, losing himself in those green eyes. "I love you."  

 She blushed a bright red, color staining her cheeks as she bit her lip and looked down. Pete rubbed her hand gently and urged Buck onward once again.  

"Are you sure I'm what you want, Pete?" she finally asked.  

Pete frowned as he guided Buck around a puddle. "Why wouldn't you be?" He couldn't imagine why any woman as beautiful, warm and caring as Kaitlyn would think she wouldn't be what a man would want.  

"I know you spoke to my mama." Kaitlyn buried her face in his back. "I know she told you about my past."  

"She told me enough that I figured it out," he agreed. "I'm sorry that happened to you, Kaitlyn. You were too young to have to live through such a thing. As a lawman, I'm pretty ashamed that Gilliam got away with all of that for so long. I guess he wouldn't have if not for his brother. As a man, I'm furious that those men took what they did from you."  

He felt Kaitlyn fidget behind him. "Yes, but... I was a 

whore . I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to cut your losses and run, as Uncle Jeremiah would say. You deserve better.“

Kaitlyn's heart was breaking as she spoke but she had to be fair to the man and at least give him the option of leaving. He was already sacrificing so much to be with her. She was also a 

tarnished woman and he had a right to change his mind about her.

"You were a child!" Pete all but yelled as he jerked Buck to a stop and turned to glare at her. His scar was jumping and twitching and Kaitlyn swallowed hard. "What that man, and those other men, did you to you was wrong and if I could I would kill them all at least a hundred times for it. There is no way, no matter how you look at the situation, that what they 

forced an eleven year old girl to do makes her a whore. You are not a whore, Kaitlyn.“

Kaitlyn had no idea what to say. She'd never seen Pete like this before. "Pete, I...."  

He held up his hand. "I'm not done yet," he snapped. "I guess you got the wrong impression of me since I turn into a stuttering, clumsy mess around you but, I am a man, Kaitlyn. A man doesn't just 'cut his losses and run' when he learns something he might not like. Now, dammit, I told you I love you and I've told you I want to be with you. I told you I would be right here forever. It pisses me off and frustrates the hell out of me that you seem determined to not believe a word I say!"  

"It's not that," Kaitlyn insisted. "It's just..."  

"Did I say I was done?" Pete's demanded with a raise of his brow.  

Kaitlyn shook her head and fell silent. This was a new side of Pete and, while Kaitlyn preferred the softer, gentler side, she had to admit that it was nice to know this strength and confidence was inside him as well.  

"Now, Kaitlyn, I was raised to believe that a promise is a promise and love is forever. I'm here for the long haul, sweetheart, whether you like it or not."  

Finally finished with everything he had to say, Pete turned to face forward and continued Buck on their trek to town. They were coming into town before Kaitlyn responded. "I like it," she whispered against his back.  

Pete glanced over his shoulder at her again. "Like what?"  

Somehow she managed to meet his gaze. "That you're here for the long haul."  

Pete's brown eyes softened and he smiled. "Good. I'm glad we came to an understanding."  

When he winked, Kaitlyn laughed lightly. "I love you, Pete."  

Pete's heart swelled and then floated away on the same breeze that was carrying her laughter through the air. "I believe that's just about the prettiest sound I've ever heard."  

"I love you?" Kaitlyn asked.  

Pete shook his head. "That was real nice but I was talking about your laughter. I love hearing you laugh. You should do it more often."  

Kaitlyn bit her lip. "I have a feeling I just might now that you're around."  

"I guess I got another reason to stay then, don't I?"  

Pete pulled Buck to a stop outside the doc's. He jumped down and took Kaitlyn by the waist to help her down as well. Their bodies brushed as he sat her on her feet and their eyes locked.  

Kaitlyn felt a heat that started at the tips of her toes and worked its way up to the top of her head before dropping back down into her stomach and swirling low in her belly. She had never felt anything like this before but she understood what it meant.  

Her body wanted Pete.  

Her mind, however, was the problem as memories of the past began to fill it.  

"Hey, get back here, Kaitlyn," Pete ordered sternly.  

Kaitlyn blinked and shook her head. "What? I'm right here."  

"I lost you for a second," Pete whispered. "Wherever you went, whoever he was, it wasn't right here and he wasn't me."  

Kaitlyn averted her gaze. "I'm sorry."  

Pete put his gloved hands gently on her cold cheeks and forced her to look up at him. "Don't apologize. I'll be back this evening to get you. I need to help Marston with that chore list at the ranch."  

Kaitlyn wanted to reply but Pete's closeness and his touch upon her cheeks was stealing her breath.  

Pete looked into her eyes and for a moment he saw no fear. There was love and want but no fear. 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained', Pete was going for more.  

He lowered his face toward hers and saw her eyes widen. She tried to pull away but Pete held her firmly in place. Instead of kissing her lips, he pressed the lightest of kisses to her brow.  

"I love you, Kaitlyn. I'll see you this evening."  

Pete climbed on Buck and rode away, leaving Kaitlyn standing there with wide eyes and a racing heart. Pete had kissed her...It had only been a kiss to the head but still, a kiss was a kiss. Kaitlyn had never had a kiss from a man that was warm and tender the way Pete's kiss had been.  

Doctor Rankin stepped onto the porch. "I see your pa chose to let the man live."  

Kaitlyn turned quickly and smoothed out her skirts. "Yes, he did. I'm terribly sorry for putting you and Blanche in the position that we put you in last time we were here. That never should have...."  

Doctor Rankin held up his hand and smiled warmly. "Let's just forget about it, shall we? I'm only grateful that he didn't shoot the boy. It wouldn't look very well if people were being murdered at the doctor's house. It could cause a drop in my client base."  

Kaitlyn was relieved to know that her last visit hadn't harmed the relationship she shared with Doctor Rankin. She smiled. "My pa doesn't actually shoot people very often."  

The doctor laughed. "Yes, because most people are scared away by the sheer size of him." Kaitlyn could only nod because it was the truth. Doctor Rankin motioned toward the house. "Well come along then, Kaitlyn. I have a boy inside who was climbing in a frozen fence and took a tumble. His hand is broken and I need you to help me set it."  

Kaitlyn spared one last glance at Pete's retreating figure in the distance before quickly following the doctor inside.

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

Pete felt better than he had ever felt before in his life as he rode out of town. Why wouldn’t he? Kaitlyn loved him and she was going to give him a chance to prove himself worthy of her. Damn, but that was a miracle in itself! For so long Pete had been walking around angry, bitter and full of hate but Kaitlyn had taken all of that away.

He felt lighter, freer and he couldn't wait to build a life with her. Now all that was left to do was find a job and convince the woman to marry him.  

Pete was contemplating how best to do that when he heard a scream. He glanced to his left to see a flash of movement in a small group of trees about two hundred yards away.  

"What's going on?" Pete called out with alarm.  

There was another feminine scream followed by a male roar of rage and a gunshot. After that gunshot the woman's scream grew animalistic and Pete knew he had to do something.

He pulled his gun and urged Buck into his fastest gallop toward the chaos. The woman's screams grew painfully loud as Pete neared her and the sight he was met with made his blood run cold.  

An elderly man was lying shot dead upon the white snow, his blood soaking around him and staining the pristine landscape. A woman in a torn blue dress was clinging to his body and there was a bloody welt on the back of her head, smearing her graying hair with red.  

Pete saw a man riding away in the distance. The hooves of his brown horse were thundering and kicking up a cloud of snow and mud. Pete didn't have time chase after the man because at that moment, the woman picked up the dead man's revolver and pressed it to her temple.  

Pete acted on pure instinct and leapt from Buck, tacking the woman and grabbing the gun. The movement caused both his healing wounds to scream in protest but Pete ignored them.  

"Let me go!" she screamed as she kicked and fought against him. Her pale blue eyes were wide and scared as she stared at the scarred side of his face.  

"Ma'am, calm down," Pete grunted when she brought her knee up into his side. Slowly she began to still. Pete stood and pulled off his duster coat. "What happened here?" he asked as he helped the woman to her feet and wrapped his coat around her shoulders.  

The woman was shaking, her lightly wrinkled face was pale and her blue eyes just kept staring at the dead man in the snow. "He killed my husband.. he tried to.. tried to..."

She couldn't seem to get the words out and she wrapped her arms tight around herself and just began to mumble as she rocked back and forth. The poor woman was in shock and Pete needed to get her away from the body and out of the weather.  

Pete helped her onto Buck and climbed on himself. "I can't leave him," she whispered, glancing down at her husband. "He'll be so upset when he wakes up and I'm not here."  

Pete could barely swallow around the lump in his throat. "I'll just take you to the doc's and then I'll come back for him so he's not alone."  

The woman only nodded and then fell silent.  

"Ma'am, what is your name?" Pete asked, wanting to end the silence that stretched on and on as they rode back toward town.  

"Carol... I should have covered my husband up before I left him. He's going to be so cold."  

Pete was cold. The woman had his coat. He didn't mention it.  

"Ma'am, can you tell me what happened?"  

"My husband, Gary, we've only been married a few short months. He worked his whole life on ranches and he'd finally had enough set back to come up here and rest during our final years. He had heard about Windfall from a man in Colorado and decided to make it our home...."  

The woman broke down with a sob and covered her face with her bloody hands.  

"Do you know who did this to you?"  Pete asked, the lawman who had been long dead inside of him suddenly sparking back to life.

"He said he needed help and my Gary is such a trusting man. I tried to tell him not to stop but I'm sure Gary never imagined that monsters like that man even existed..."

Again her voice broke and this time Pete decided to simply let her be. She was clearly not in any shape to tell him anything useful. Pete brought Buck to a stop outside the doc's and helped the woman off the horse.  

As he helped her up the steps, she swooned, reminding Pete that she had a head wound. The woman lost consciousness and all her weight fell on Pete. He gritted his teeth against the pain and dragged her to the door, which he kicked several times.  

Kaitlyn stared with wide-eyes when she opened the door. "Pete, what happened?!"  

"I'm not real sure," Pete replied. "Got a place I can lay her down?"  

Kaitlyn nodded quickly as she turned. "Of course."  

She led him to the patient room that Pete had stayed in during his time here and Pete laid Carol down upon the bed. He watched in awe as Kaitlyn began to examine her. Kaitlyn was clearly a talented doctor and she had a compassion and caring nature that made her all the more incredible. Her bedside manner was something that no amount of schooling could teach. Kaitlyn was the kind of person who made a difference and she made Pete want to be that kind of man again too.  

"What do we have here?" Doctor Rankin asked as he entered the room.  

"She has a nasty bump on her head but I don't see any other injuries," Kaitlyn replied as she began to gather towels and putting water on to heat.  

Doctor Rankin turned his attention to Pete. "Did you find her?"  

Pete nodded as he pulled off his hat and twisted it in his hands. "Yes, sir. I have to go back and get her husband."  

"You left a man out there alone?" Kaitlyn asked, stoking the fire.  

Pete scooped his fallen duster coat off the floor. "He won't mind," he replied, his tone letting everyone know the husband was dead.  

Kaitlyn walked to him and laid her hand gently on his arm. "What happened, Pete?"  

Pete's tense muscles relaxed beneath her touch as he remembered the screams, the gunshot and the blood. His jaw tightened. "I'll be back. Take care of her, Kaitlyn. Her name is Carol."  

Without waiting for a response, Pete left the doctors and made his way down the road to the undertakers. "I'll be bringing in a man shortly," he informed the stoop-backed, white-haired man nailing together a coffin.  

"I'll have a box ready."  

Pete nodded and then rode out of town. The body was lying where he'd left it in that patch of trees and Pete saw that the murderer had left a clear trail to follow.  

Pete knew that this crime could not go unpunished. The lawman in him, the justice loving man his pa had raised, simply refused to let this act go unanswered. This was a lawless territory which made arresting and jailing this man an impossibility. That meant it would fall on Pete's shoulders.  

It wasn't right that this old man had been murdered. It wasn't right that his wife was now a widow and laying busted up at the doc's. The Government might not be able to keep the peace in this lawless land but Pete would do his best to see it done.  

Pete tossed the dead man's body over Buck before climbing back in the saddle. He took the man to the undertaker and was on his way back out of town when Kaitlyn came out of the doctor's house.  

"Pete?  Where are you going?"  

Pete remained on Buck's back as he looked down at Kaitlyn. "I'm going to  

Kaitlyn's eyes were cautious and he saw her pale at the sight of the blood covering Buck's back and hindquarters. "What do you mean?"  

"Well I would say that I was going to arrest him but we both know that's not what's going to happen."  

"But you don't even know who did this, do you?" she asked. 	

"Long black hair. Light brown duster coat. Brown horse with a saddle that has brass stirrups that glint in the sun." Pete had always been good at memorizing details with only a glance. "He also left a trail that's gonna be easy to follow."  

"So, you're going to kill a man?" Kaitlyn took a step away from Buck.  

Pete sighed and rubbed at his neck. "I'd rather not. I'd rather arrest him, see him tried for his crimes and hanged if found guilty but that's just not possible now. This is a lawless territory, Kaitlyn. Justice is going to have to be bloody. There are no lawmen, no courts, no judges and no juries."  

"And you're taking it upon yourself to be a vigilante?" she demanded softly.  

Pete knew there were people watching and listening but he found himself unable to care. He nodded. "If that's what it takes to keep good people safe, yes. For five years I've been wandering around lawless places and I've watched people have their lives ripped apart, their savings taken, their innocence stolen by people who think they can take advantage." Pete shook his head. "Until the law steps in and does something, I'll just take care of things myself."  

"A U.S. Marshall would have a say in what happens here," Kaitlyn reminded him.  

Pete shook his head. "There are too few of them and too many places like this, Kaitlyn. You didn't hear that woman screaming, you didn't see that man lying in the snow. You didn't see her clinging to her husband's lifeless body in her torn dress. I was raised to believe that justice is everything. I was a good lawman. I lost that for a while. I lost my belief that I can make a difference. You've made me want to make a difference again. This is something I have to do, Kaitlyn."  

Kaitlyn simply nodded and watched Pete ride away. There was nothing she could say that would stop him. All she could do was pray that he would survive what he was about to do. She couldn't blame Pete for his actions. This 

was a lawless man and while she didn’t see that as an entirely bad thing, considering the corrupt lawman who had nearly destroyed her family, she knew that there needed to be some consequence for the men who came into the land and thought they could murder, rape and steal.

Kaitlyn only wished it didn't have to be her man who taught them they were wrong.

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

“Where are you off to, Pete?” Marston asked Pete as they met on the road.

Marston had been riding into town to get cinnamon candy for Lucy. Rose had been angry with him for dropping everything to get the girl what she wanted but he had only shrugged. She was worth it—and he'd wanted to make sure that Kaitlyn and Pete had made it safely.

"I'm not sure," Pete replied. "I have a trail to follow."  

Marston sensed a change in the man. The carefree nature he normally displayed was toned down and in its place was a seriousness and a self-assured posture.  

"A trail to where and why is Buck covered in blood? Did something happen to Kaitlyn?"  

"No, I wouldn't let anything happen to her," Pete assured him. "I'll clean Buck up when I'm done."  

Marston lit a cigarette and took a long draw. "Why don't you get to telling me exactly what's going on."  

Pete signaled for Marston to follow him off the road. "Why don't we walk and talk?" he asked. "I don't want him getting too far ahead of me."  

Marston saw the trail they were following and he nodded as he followed after the other man. "Who are we following?"  

"I don't know. I was on my way back to the house earlier when I came upon an old man and woman being attacked. The attacker ran away after murdering the man and bashing the woman in the head. I took her to the doc's, took the man to the undertaker and now I'm gonna see that bastard pay for what he did."  

Marston's gaze never left the torn up snow and mud the attacker had left in his wake as he'd ridden away hard. "Why?"  

"Why what?"  

"Why are you going after him? Did you know the people?"  

"No. What does that have to do with anything?" Pete demanded. "That man killed an innocent man and widowed an innocent woman. He just rode off afterward like there wasn't a thing wrong with what he'd done. I plan on letting him know he can't get away with that."  

"You're gonna risk your neck for folks you don't even know? Is this some kind of habit of yours?" Marston asked, before taking another long draw off his cigarette.  

Pete glared over at him. "I guess it is. I always just thought it was called being a decent person."  

"Foolish is what it is."  

"Sorry you feel that way," Pete grumbled.  

"I guess that's what makes you a good lawman though. Lawmen are supposed to risk their necks for someone they don't know."  

Pete was quick to argue. "I'm not a lawman anymore."  

"Sure you are." Marston nodded. "I reckon you being a lawman is like me being an outlaw. It's in our blood and it always will be."  

"That might make things a bit awkward at family get-togethers," Pete noted.  

Marston's eyes narrowed as he blew out a cloud of smoke. "You saying you want to be part of the family?" he asked, his voice so calm it caused Pete to shift in his saddle.  

Pete shrugged. "How about we talk about that if I live through serving justice?"  

"I'll come with you," Marston stated. "It wouldn't be too good if I let something happen to the man my daughter is in love with."  

Pete's snorted. "I don't need to be protected, Marston. I can take care of myself."  

Marston chuckled and flicked ashes. "Fine then, I'll let your ass get shot. But I'm still coming along because I'd hate to see anything happen to Buck. I'm fond of that horse. We just gotta make sure we're back by supper time. Rose is making a ham."  

---

Kaitlyn had slipped Carol from her tattered and stained dress and was washing the blood from her skin but her mind was not on her task. Her mind was on Pete.  

‘You make me want to make a difference again.’ That’s what he had told her. Kaitlyn respected that. She admired that. She understood wanting to make a difference because she felt the same way when she was helping someone who was hurt or sick.

Being a doctor was in her blood. Being a lawman was in Pete's. Still she wasn't sure how to handle being a lawman's wife.... 

Wife? She had to stop thinking that way and stop getting ahead of herself. Pete hadn’t yet asked her to marry him!

Kaitlyn shook her head to clear her thoughts and pulled a blanket up to Carol's chin. The woman hadn't wakened yet but her sleep seemed natural and peaceful. She must be exhausted from the trauma.  

Kaitlyn gathered up the dirty towels and Carol's dirty clothes and threw them in the hamper before leaving the room. Nervous energy had her pacing the sitting room as she once again began to think about Pete. Where was he? Was he okay? Could he do it or would he be killed trying? The thought of Pete dying filled Kaitlyn with cold. She couldn't lose Pete. Not when she was beginning to think she might have a chance at a happy future with a man who loved her.  

A chill worked its way down her spine and she shivered and wrapped her arms tight around herself. She lost herself, staring into the fire and nearly screamed when a hand closed over her shoulder.  

"Sorry, sweetheart! I didn't mean to scare you!" Blanche exclaimed as Kaitlyn put her hand over her heart and spun around.  

"It's not your fault," Kaitlyn assured her. "I was too busy thinking to hear you come in the room."  

"Are you worried?" Blanche asked and then she smiled at Kaitlyn's questioning look. "Most of the town heard your man's speech about justice before he rode out of town. It's been a while since anyone has cared enough about what happens here to do anything about it. I'm sure he'll be very loved for standing up."  

"He's already loved," Kaitlyn whispered softly as she sat down in the arm chair.  

"By you?" Blanche asked.  

Kaitlyn nodded. "What if he's killed?" Kaitlyn questioned, her lip trembling.  

Blanche patted her hand reassuringly. "You just have to pray that he isn't." She relaxed in her own chair. "How is the patient?"  

"Sleeping. I believe she'll be okay. At least physically."  

"It's the mental scars that are the hardest to move past," Blanche said with a knowing gaze.  

Kaitlyn turned her eyes back to the dancing flames. "Yes. Yes they are."  

---

"So what does this hardened criminal we're chasing after look like?" Marston asked after they'd been riding a long while.  

Pete knew they were getting closer to the man. The horse's tracks showed that the animal had slowed considerably and there were bright red droplets leaving a trail in the snow. Either the horse or the man was injured.  

"I didn't get a good look," Pete replied.  

Marston grinned. "But a bright young man such as yourself had to have noticed a thing or two."  

Pete could see the glint in Marston's eyes that said the man was enjoying the chase and probably looking forward to the chance to kill someone. Pete figured having Marston along was probably a good thing. Pete wasn't much of a killer himself and if there was anyone who knew about killing folks it was the man who had already been hanged for murder once in his life.  

"He shouldn't be too hard to recognize," Pete assured him. "And his horse will be easy to spot. He had a saddle with the gaudiest golden brass stirrups..."  

"What?" Marston demanded, a slight edge to his voice.  

"Sound familiar?" Pete glanced sideways at the man. "Golden brass stirrups?"  

Marston was careful to mask his emotions as he shrugged and shook his head. "Just sounds damned ridiculous is all."  

Inside Marston's loyalties were being torn in half. He happened to know a man with a saddle just like that and Rose and Marston had given it to the man. If Marston's fears were proven true and the man they were chasing was the man that Marston sincerely hoped it wasn't, then Marston wasn't sure what he would do.  

But surely it wasn't Duke. Duke and Jeremiah had been cleaning up their acts considerably in recent years. Duke wouldn't be out running around, killing old men and bashing old women over the heads. Would he?

Hell, if it was Duke and there was a showdown, Marston was just going to turn his head and let whatever happened happen. He owed Duke his life but Kaitlyn was in love with Pete. Marston wasn't going to have a hand in killing either one of them.  

"There he is," Pete whispered as they topped over a small hill a short time later. They could see a man's figure huddled beside a small fire. His back was to them and he was crouched but Marston knew instantly that it wasn't Duke when he saw the long black hair.  

He let out a sigh of relief. He really hadn't wanted to watch his friend, (gulp) or his future son-in-law, (bigger gulp), get shot today.  

Marston slid his rifle off his back and pressed it into his shoulder as he sighted down the barrel. Pete grabbed the barrel and yanked it down. "What are you doing?" he demanded.  

"Don't you ever touch my gun," Marston growled. "And I think it's pretty damn obvious what I'm doing. You wanted the bastard killed, didn't you?"  

"Yes," Pete agreed. "But I want him to know what he's dying for."  

Marston shook his head. "That's the most fool headed thing I've ever heard. Why do you want to have a chat first? That man knows who he is, what he is. All us outlaws do. He won't go down without a fight. It's better to shoot him now and be done with it."  

"I won't shoot a man in the back," Pete warned. "And I won't stand by and let you do it either."  

Marston grumbled but he was grinning with amusement as he put his rifle on his back. "Lead the way then, 

boss .“

Pete chose to ignore Marston's sarcasm and headed down the hill. The wind was whipping around them and kept their approach hidden from the stranger. "Hello the camp!" Pete called.  

The man turned quickly and pulled his revolver as he did so. Pete glanced over at Marston but the man was sitting relaxed and at ease in the saddle with a smile on his face and his cigarette hanging off his lip.  

"Friend of yours?" Pete asked him.  

"Nope."  

"Who the hell are you two and what do you want?" the murderer growled angrily, his thin lips pulled back in a sneer. "You shouldn't sneak up on a man out here unless you're looking to die."  

"My name is Pete Mears," Pete replied taking in the sight of the blood soaking heavily through the arm of the man's light brown coat. "And this is Jacob Marston."  

"Don't lie to the man," Marston grinned. "The name's Marston Jacobs."  

Pete shot Marston a look but the big man simply chuckled. "What exactly do you want, Pete?" the stranger asked, lowering his gun slightly.  

"I like your saddle," Pete replied. The man followed Pete's gaze toward the saddled horse and when the man turned back to Pete, he found himself starring down the barrel of Pete's gun.  

"What the hell!?" the outlaw cried.  

"You should just drop your gun now, sir," Pete warned.  

The man slowly did just that. "What do you want with me?"  

"You killed a man back there outside of Windfall and you beat his woman in the head. I've come to see you pay for that. I'd like to take you back to town and lock you up until I can get a U.S. Marshall up here."  

The man sneered. "What do you think you are? A lawman?"  

Marston nodded. "Yep, he is. And I'm a dead outlaw. And we have supper to be getting to. Are you coming willingly or not?" 	

"Not," the man replied before diving for his gun. He came up and fired a shot just as Pete fired his.  

Pete waited for the pain of the bullet but it didn't come. The man had missed. Pete had not.  

The dying man put a hand to the hole in his chest as if hoping he could hold in the blood. "Why did you do it?" Pete demanded as he hopped off Buck's back and kicked away the man's gun. "Why did you attack those people?"  

The stranger coughed and blood trickled down his chin. He smiled. "Because I could," he stated before falling face first into the snow. The crimson puddle around him growing and spreading on the white snow.  

Marston chuckled. "By God, he can't do it no more, can he?"  

"No he can't," Pete agreed as he began searching the dead man's pockets. "Why'd you tell him your real name?" Pete asked as Marston went over to the dead man's horse. "What if he had gotten away?"  

"He wouldn't have," Marston assured him. "No one lives once I make up my mind to kill them."  

"Vincent lived."  

Marston snorted. "I was feeling generous that day and it nearly cost me my life. I learned my lesson well."  

Pete nodded. "Thanks for having my back today."  

"Dammit!" Marston exclaimed.  

Pete looked up from the wanted poster he'd found the man's pocket. It was the man's own poster. Apparently his name had been Gibson Lee and he'd been wanted for murder and robbery. It would seem that some people never changed.  

"What is it?" Pete asked.  

"For starters, I don't like being thanked for things. It makes my stomach hurt," Marston grumbled. "And that bastard stole this saddle. This is Duke's saddle." 	

"Kaitlyn's Uncle Duke? The one that cut you down when the Marshall hanged you?"  

"Yep," Marston nodded. "This was a Christmas present for him."  

"Must have been an expensive present," Pete mused.  

Marston chuckled as he led the dead man's horse over and they tossed the dead man upon it. "Nope. It was free. You could say it was a donation from a former banker who decided he no longer needed it."

Pete raised his brow and met Marston's gaze over the back of the horse. "I won't ask who he was or why he didn't need it anymore."  

Marston's grin widened. "Good. I wouldn't have told you. I'm not giving Duke the damn saddle back either. I'm gonna let Jeremiah have it."  

Marston hopped onto Buck and signaled for Pete to use the horse Marston had been riding before. "Let's get going, lawman. I gotta get Lucy some candy and get on home to Rose's ham."  

"Does Rose make good ham?"  

"Does a bear shit in the woods?" Marston tilted his head. "So how does it feel? Do you feel like justice was served?"  

Pete let out a long breath and rubbed at his face. "I wish he could have faced a trial and then been hanged the way the law says he should be. Murdering someone is never the right way."  

"Every time someone is hanged, the man that pulls that lever becomes a murderer and, in a way, so are the men that lead the prisoner to the gallows. Truthfully, I think that simply shooting a man and getting it over with is the easier way."  

Pete sighed. "You're probably right."  

"Of course I am," Marston agreed. "What you did was admirable—risking your life to avenge that man. I'm sure his wife will be grateful."  

"If she's okay. She was unconscious when I left," Pete admitted.  

"She's got Kaitlyn tending to her. I'm sure she's fine."  

The men fell silent and Pete thought about the day. He couldn't deny the sense of pride and accomplishment he felt deep inside. A bad man was dead and Pete had killed him. Never again would Gibson Lee murder an innocent person or take what didn't belong to him. It was the kind of thing a man could feel proud of.

---

Kaitlyn was pacing the sitting room once again when she heard footsteps on the porch. She didn't even wait for a knock before throwing the door open and when she saw Pete standing there, she let out a cry of relief and threw her arms around his neck.  

"You're alive," she gasped, burying her face in his chest.  

Pete's arms circled around her and hugged her tightly as if he'd been gone for months instead of hours. "Of course I am," he replied.  

He led her into the house and closed the door with his foot. "Did you get him?" Kaitlyn asked, pulling away just enough so she could look at his face.  

"Yeah, he won't be hurting anyone else," Pete assured her and Kaitlyn could see the pride in his eyes.  

She laid her hand on his scarred cheek and Pete leaned into her touch. "How is she?" he asked.  

"She's still asleep. I believe she's exhausted."  

"She was pretty upset," Pete agreed. "She went through a lot today."  

"So what happened when you went after him?" Kaitlyn asked, laying her head back against his heart.  

Pete couldn't help but notice that she wasn't making any attempt to leave his arms. "He's gone and that's all that matters. I met your pa heading out of town and he rode with me. It turns out the man had stolen a saddle from your Uncle Duke." 	

"The stirrups." Kaitlyn nodded. "Why did pa ride with you?"  

"To protect Buck," Pete replied dryly.  

Kaitlyn laughed and the sound was music to Pete's ears. "He wanted to protect you, not the horse."  

"I'd rather say it was for Buck," Pete assured her.  

"Where is pa?"  

"Getting cinnamon candy for Lucy and then he's heading back to the house to eat some of your mama's ham."  

Kaitlyn's stomach rumbled on the loudly at the mention of her mama's ham. She'd been too nervous to each much all day and it was getting close to dark.  

"You're hungry. Why don't you come on and I'll get you some of that ham." Pete saw her glance go to the patient room door and he sighed. "I'll bring you back in the morning so you can check on her."  

Kaitlyn pulled out of Pete's arms and smiled. "Just let me tell the doc we're leaving. There really is nothing better than mama's ham."

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

“Marston, as much as that man deserved to die and as much as justice needed to be served, you can’t be doing that again,” Rose said sternly that night as she ran her comb though her damp red curls.

Marston raised his brow as he stepped out of the shower. "I can't?" he asked with amusement.  

Rose forced herself to ignore the way the sight of his strong body, dripping with water set her blood on fire and shook her head. "No, you can't."  

Marston chuckled as he slid into a clean pair of red long johns. "I never have liked being told what I can and can't do," he said. "Why don't you just tell me why I can't be doing it."  

Rose felt her temper flare. Did he truly not know? Or was it simply that he didn't care? She slammed her brush down on the vanity. "Sometimes, you're an ass!"  

Rose headed for the door but Marston was quick to grab her arm and pull her back to him. "I'm an ass all the time," he admitted regretfully. "Talk to me, Rose. What's wrong? You know I'd never hurt you on purpose."  

Rose took a breath and looked up into his golden eyes to steady herself. "I don't want you risking your life anymore," she admitted, as her voice trembled. "I lost you once and I couldn't live through losing you again... I wouldn't make it next time..."  

Marston sighed and wrapped her up tight in his arms. "You're not gonna lose me, Rose. I came back to you last time, didn't I? I'll always come back to you."  

Rose sniffed against his chest. "How close was it?"  

Marston knew he couldn't lie to her. "Not close for me but Pete almost ate some lead. If that man hadn't been tired and weak from an injury, and if his hand hadn't been shaking, then Pete might have died too."  

Rose's eyes narrowed up at him. "He didn't tell Kaitlyn it was that close."  

Marston kissed he thick red curls. "Why worry her? Pete's alive and well. Justice was served. Everyone is here and safe. We might as well just let it go."  

"I guess you're right," Rose mumbled.  

"Of course I am. I'm always right." Marston grinned. "Do you know what else I always am?"  

He gave her a wink and she smiled coyly. "What's that?"  

"How about we head to the bedroom and I'll show you?"  

Rose felt a tremble of anticipation wash over her. "I'm awfully tired," she warned.  

Marston shrugged. "That's okay. You can just lay there."  

Rose let out a loud burst of laughter. "Spoken like a true romantic."  

"You must be talking about your other man," Marston said, nuzzling her neck. "I'm nothing but an old outlaw."  

"You're much more than that," Rose countered. "But you can keep telling yourself whatever you need to."  

Marston growled and then swooped in, capturing her lips hungrily. He walked backward, pulling her with him and never breaking the kiss as he opened the door and stepped into the hallway.  

"Marston?" Pete's voice filled the quiet and Marston growled, turning away from Rose to see Pete turning up the staircase toward them.  

Pete's eyes widened when he saw Rose. Damn but hadn't realized that Marston and Rose were having alone time.... It made the conversation he'd finally decided to have with Marston seem a whole lot more like a bad idea.  

The look Marston was sending his way made his skin crawl and would have the devil himself sobbing and begging forgiveness. "Just walk away, Pete," Marston warned.  

Pete was more than happy to do just that but Rose stop him. "Is something wrong?"  

"No ma'am." Pete cleared his throat awkwardly. "I was just gonna talk to Marston but I didn't that you all were...uh...busy. It can wait until later."  

"Good. Get gone and we'll talk later," Marston agreed.  

Rose shook her head and Pete wished the woman would let things be. "This sounds important, Marston. You just go talk to the man and come to bed when you're done."  

Pete watched as Rose and Marston stared hard at each other, having a battle of wills without words. A seven foot tall murdering outlaw versus a five and a half foot soft and sweet woman.  

Knowing Marston the way Pete was beginning to, he wasn't surprised a bit when it was the outlaw who broke. "Fine."

He kissed Rose's cheek and she disappeared down the hall. Marston turn to Pete. "This better really be important and you better get it out quick. We can talk in the kitchen."  

Pete spun around and headed back down the stairs, nearly tripping over his boots a good twenty times. He was embarrassed to find that his hands were shaking as he took a seat at the kitchen table. Marston lounged against the counter with his arms crossed over his broad chest. "Get to talking, Pete. I definitely have better things to be doing."  

Pete folded his hands on the table as his knee bounced. "Right. Well um.. I was hoping we could... talk about what we started talk about earlier..."  

Dread filled Marston. This was a talk that he damn sure didn't want to have. "Which was?"  

"Me becoming an official member of the family." Pete somehow mustered up the courage to look Marston in the eye. "I'd like to marry your daughter."  

Marston's knuckles popped. "You would huh?"  

"Y..yes sir," Pete stammered. Damn, but this was nerve wracking! He'd rather face twenty men with guns than this single man with skillet sized hands.  

"And why should I give you permission?" Marston demanded.  

Pete took a deep breath. He would have to do his best to appear confident to earn Marston's approval. "I love her, Marston. I will do what needs to be done to see that she's happy, healthy and taken care of..."

"Are we talking about a woman or a horse?" Marston mumbled.  

Pete ignored him. "I think I've proven that I'm a good man and I can take care of her and be good to her."  

"Why do you want to marry her?" Marston asked.  

Pete thought the question was a bit odd but he stared down at his hands on the table top. "Not very long ago I hated the whole world and every single person in it. I hated being alive. I wanted to die—that's probably why I ended up shot. I was looking for trouble. But then my eyes found her face, I heard her voice and I saw her gentle spirit and everything inside me changed. Kaitlyn saved me and I have never loved anyone or anything the way I love her. I want to be by her side every day for the rest of my life. I want to make her as happy as she's made me."  

The kitchen was silent for several long moments. Pete wondered what Marston was thinking but he didn't dare look over at the man. If Marston had on his angry face, Pete wouldn't be able to stop his cowardly legs from running in the other direction.  

Finally Marston rubbed his hand over his face and let out a pained sigh. "As much as I'd like to tell you to make your peace because you're about to die, I know I can't. Kaitlyn smiles more since you came along. She seems to trust you in ways she's never trusted anyone else. It's clear she loves you. What kind of pa would I be if I said no?"  

Pete was flabbergasted. "Really?"  

Marston chuckled. "Yeah, really. You can marry my daughter." 	Pete was about to breathe a sigh of relief but then Marston's gaze turned predatory. "But, let me warn you. If you ever hurt her, if you make her cry, if you make her unhappy for any reason, I will kill you. That's not just an idle threat, Pete. Not from a man like me. She was mine before she was yours and I'm trusting you to take care of her. Don't let me down." 	

Pete stood. "I won't sir," he vowed, knowing that a death threat from Marston was different from those from any other father. Most father's wouldn't actually 

kill anyone. Marston had once been hanged for being a murderer.

Pete held out his hand and Marston stared hard at it a moment before wrapping it in a grip that was just a bit too tight. Pete refused to let his pain show as he smiled at the outlaw.

"Now go to bed, Pete," Marston ordered before striding from the room.  

Pete let out a long sigh of relief once he was alone. He had imagined one hundred different ways that conversation could have gone and none of them had ended with such quick acceptance.  

Now it was time to go lay in bed, stare at the ceiling and determine the best way to convince Kaitlyn that she wanted to marry him.  

---

"I'm getting too old for this shit," Duke grumbled as a blast of icy wind nearly cut him in two. He pulled his duster coat tighter around himself and lifted the collar to protect his neck.  

"This is what makes me feel most alive," Jeremiah countered. "I couldn't live all cooped up in one place the way Marston does."  

"I don't know," Duke mused. "The older I get, the nicer it sounds." He kept his horse close to the pine thicket they were riding beside in hopes of warding off a bit of the wind.

Jeremiah shook his head. "Really?" While he'd known that Duke was getting old and his heart just wasn't in it anymore, it still sounded strange to hear the lifelong outlaw admit that putting down roots sounded like a good idea.  

"Yes. I find myself wondering what it might be like to come home and have a woman waiting there for me. Someone who knows the real me and loves me anyway. A warm fire, a warm meal, a warm bed.. I can see the appeal. I could have had all that once and I walked away from it."  

Jeremiah's jaw dropped. "When?"

Duke's jaw tightened. "A long time ago."  

Jeremiah sensed that Duke didn't want to talk about things. "You know, if it's a warm bed you're after, whores can do that pretty good."  

Duke pulled his hat down. "I'm too old for whores."  

Jeremiah's eyes widened and he spit a long stream of tobacco. "Now there's a sentence you'll never hear me utter! Hell if I ever say anything even close to sounding like that I'll shoot my own self!"  

Duke chuckled. "There's a pretty big difference in our ages, young pup. When I was your age, I didn't think I'd ever get old." Duke's eyes once again seemed to be looking into the past. "I was wrong."  

"I don't like hearing you talk that way," Jeremiah complained. "You know what you need? A stiff drink and a soft whore. What do you say we stop in the next town and get both?"  

Duke was quick to shake his head. "No. We've only got another week or so until we reach Marston and we can't be stopping now. We need to warn Marston, take care of Frank, Vincent and whatever others they bring along and then I need to be figuring out what I'm gonna do with the rest of my life."  

Jeremiah winked. "Marston might make that decision easy when he shoots you for getting that fancy saddle stolen."  

"Don't worry. One day I'll see ol' Gibson out and I'll get my damned saddle back," Duke assured him.  

Jeremiah laughed. "How did he manage to steal it anyhow?"  

"I was distracted I suppose," Duke replied. He didn't add that he'd stopped for a rest beside a river, leaned against a shade tree and fallen fast asleep. When he woken up, his saddle and supplies were gone. At least Gibson had left him his horse and a note saying thank you.  

Cocky bastard.

"Distracted? Hell, you're the only always preaching to everyone about not getting distracted."  

Duke shrugged. "Maybe I'm getting senile."  

"I think you might be," Jeremiah admitted. "Hell, all this talk about settling down, love, not wanting a whore or whiskey and now getting distracted? There must be something pretty serious happening to your brain."  

"Shut the hell up, Jeremiah," Duke growled. "Or else I'll show you what your brain looks like when it's splattered all over the snow."

Jeremiah cackled. "Big talk for an old man."  

Before Jeremiah could draw another breath, the barrel of Duke's revolver was three inches from his forehead. "Old man or not, I can back up what I say."  

Jeremiah grinned. "Point taken."  

Duke holstered his gun just as another gust of frigid wind whipping across the plains. "Dammit, Marston better appreciate this."  

Jeremiah shook his head. "I wouldn't count on it."

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

“You’re awake!” Kaitlyn announced brightly as she stepped into the patient room at the doc to find Carol sitting in the chair by the window in one of Blanche’s green wool dresses.

"Do I know you?" Carol asked and then her eyes widened when they fell on Pete. "You. You're the man that found Gary and me."  

Pete pulled off his hat and ran his hand through his blond hair. "Yes, ma'am, I am."  

Kaitlyn smiled and folded her hands in front of her. "Carol, my name is Kaitlyn. I work here with the doc.  I took care of you yesterday after Pete brought you in. How are you feeling?"

"My head pains me a little." She turned her gaze back out toward the bustling street. "But not nearly as badly as my heart."  

Pete stepped forward. "Ma'am, I wanted to offer to take you down to the cemetery in about an hour. They're going to be burying your husband."  

A lone tear rolled down Carol's soft cheek. "I've already buried my parents, one husband, several lovers and three children. Why does life have to be so painful?"

Kaitlyn stepped closer and laid her hand on the woman's shoulder. "I don't know," she whispered softly. "Some of us are asked to bear more than our fair share."  

Pete cleared his throat. "Ma'am, I know it's probably small consolation after your loss but, the man that did this to you was named Gibson Lee and he paid for his crime. He won't be harming anyone else."  

"Well there's the one good thing that will come from Gary's death." Carol reddened with shame. "I thank you, sir, for being so kind when you found me yesterday. I'm afraid my mind was simply not working well."  

"Grief can do that to the best of us," Pete replied simply.  

"I've had my fair share of grief," Carol agreed. "But today is the only day I will allow tears to fall for Gary. He would not have wanted me to wallow in a dark mood. The man despised wallowing. No matter what happened in his life or in our short time together, he was a firm believer in picking yourself back up and carrying on."  

"That's a good way to be," Kaitlyn replied absently. Pete suspected her mind had strayed to her own past so he reached out and gave her tiny hand a squeeze.  

"Do you want to come with us to the cemetery?" he asked Carol.  

She stood up and smoothed her hands over her borrowed dress. "Yes, I do."  

"They're burying him in an hour but we can go down now so you can have some time alone with him if you'd like," Kaitlyn stated.  

Carol's blue eyes shone with sadness. "That is very kind of you." 	

Silence reined among them as Pete and Kaitlyn led Carol to the undertaker's building. They remained outside while she went in to see her husband. Kaitlyn wiped away a tear. "What a strong woman," she whispered with admiration. "She has lost so much in her life but she keeps going. I'm not sure I could."  

Pete took her into his arms and hugged her tight. "Most people would consider you a strong woman too, Kaitlyn. I know I do."  

Kaitlyn squirmed in his arms, feeling the eyes of more than a few townsfolk watching them. "Pete, people can see you."  

"I don't care if you don't," Pete replied with a grin.  

Before Kaitlyn could decide whether or not she cared, Langley appeared and shoved himself between them to break them apart. "I just saved your life, lawman," he winked. "Pa would have shot you for sure if he'd seen you holding onto Kaitlyn like that in plain sight. Why you ain't even married to her yet!"  

"Langley!" Kaitlyn exclaimed as Maston, Rose and Lucy stepped out of the mercantile and started their way.  

"What?" Langley feigned innocent and laid his hand on his chest. "Are you honestly telling me that this idiot hasn't asked you to marry him yet?"  

Pete was about to tell Langley to shove it up his backside when Lucy suddenly came running to them with a stick of peppermint candy clutched in her tiny hand. "Look what I got!"  

"That looks delicious." Pete smiled, happy for the change in topic.  

Marston stepped up and laid his hand on Lucy's head. "Pete, there's some folks in the mercantile that want to speak to you."  

"Kaitlyn, there are some new fabrics at the dress shop. Walk over with me and we'll look through the. The fabric I ordered for the new curtains should be there as well."  

Kaitlyn nodded and accompanied her mama and Lucy down the road.  

"I take it you haven't asked her yet?" Marston said once they were gone.  

Pete shook his head. "No, I haven't."  

"Asked her what?" Langley poked in with a grin.  

"Nothing," Pete snapped. "What did they want with me in the mercantile?"  

"Not sure." Marston shrugged. "You coming to the gun shop with me, Langley? I have work to do."  

Pete found himself alone moments later and he walked, lost in thought, to the mercantile. Dust motes swirled around him as he stepped inside and realized the place was jam packed. He recognized a few of the older members of town and Doctor Rankin was certainly one of the familiar faces there.  

"Thanks for coming to talk to us, Pete."  

"Marston didn't say what this was about," Pete replied, tipping his head. "Am I in some kind of trouble?"  

Doctor Rankin shook his head. "Not at all, Pete. Let's get straight to business."  

Pete crossed his arms over his chest. "Okay," he replied with caution.  

"Windfall and the surrounding area has its fair share of crime. Mostly it's small things. Theft, destruction of property, fighting. And most of those committing the crimes are folks passing through. Now and then we have more serious crimes like what happened with that man and his wife yesterday."  

"And?" Pete urged, wondering where the doctor was going with this.  

"And we need someone to be our law around here. We need someone to make people think twice about doing wrong."  

Pete frowned. Were they asking him to be the unofficial lawman of Windfall?  

"We'd pay you a salary!" Edmund Rayne, the saloon owner, spoke up. "Us business owners, the doc and many of the townsfolk have talked and agreed to all pitch in and see you get a salary of forty dollars a month."  

Pete swallowed hard. That was more money than a damn Texas Ranger made a month! More money than he would have made as a lawman anywhere else.  

Pete's mind was spinning. "I don't know...." He could be a lawman again. He could protect people and make a difference. But he wanted to marry Kaitlyn and be a part of her family. That family tree contained quite a few questionable characters.  

"You can take all the time you need to think about it," Doctor Rankin assured him. "The offer is open whenever you make your decision. If you choose to take the job, you could use the old town woodshed and corral as your jail. No one uses it now that we've built the new one. All you'd need are bars on the windows and locks for the doors. I'm sure Marston could help you with that. He and Langley are both real good with metal."  

"Uh.. yeah.." Pete nearly laughed out loud at the idea of asking Marston to help build a jail. "I'll get back to you about it."  

"We really need you, Pete. This town needs you," Edmund Rayne admitted.  

Pete felt a pull in his heart to say yes. This was what he wanted. It was what he'd been raised to be and it was his calling in life. But first he had to make sure that taking the job wouldn't cause him to lose Kaitlyn because the simple fact was, he wanted her more.  

"I'll let you know within a couple of days," Pete assured them before turning and stepping back outside into the sunlight. He pulled his coat tighter around him as a gust of wind blew and he headed off toward the cemetery with his mind swirling in a million directions.  

---

"Carol, I know this is none of my business so feel free to tell me to hush but, do you have any place to go?" Rose asked.  

Carol looked down at the fresh earth covering her husband's casket. Dynamite had been used to blast the frozen ground. Pete didn't' know what had been done with Gibson Lee's body—there had been no hole dug for him. If Pete had to guess, he figured the man had made a tasty meal for Carl Tepier's mean hogs. It was a gristly image for sure but in a place where lumber was hard to come by and the ground was frozen solid, no one had wanted to waste much time on a murderer.  

"No," Carol replied. "I can stay in the hotel until I figure something out. Gary has money in the bank back in Colorado. I'll have to send for it."  

Rose shook her head. "There's no need for you to stay in the hotel. We have plenty of room at our home and you can stay with us until your money arrives."  

"She can?" Marston mumbled, while cupping his hand around his cigarette as he struggled to light it in the wind.  

"Yes she can," Rose replied stubbornly.  

Marston nodded. "Well alright then. The more the merrier."  

"I couldn't possibly," Carol insisted. "I wouldn't want to impose."  

"It's no imposition," Rose promised. "Kaitlyn is kept busy helping the doctor here in town and I could use another woman's company. You planned on staying in Windfall, didn't you?"  

Carol nodded. "Yes, but..."  

"Then I insist that you accept the help of your new friends and come stay with us."  

Carol still didn't look convinced. Lucy stepped forward. "You can come stay with us, Miss Carol. We have lots of rooms and there's nowhere safer than my pa's house. Nobody messes with him."  

"What am I?" Langley huffed. "Invisible? I'm tough too."  

"Yeah but no one finds freckles scary," Marston stated, ruffling the boy's red hair. Langley grumbled and glared up at him.  

"Come stay with us," Kaitlyn insisted softly. "You'll find that this family knows a thing or two about hardship and healing and you may fit in just fine."  

Carol finally nodded with defeat. Pete was surprised by the family's willingness to take her in but he knew he shouldn't be. They were some of the kindest and charitable folks that Pete had ever met. Well at least Rose, Kaitlyn and Langley seemed to be—Marston just seemed to go along with whatever it was his wife wanted.  

---

"Pete, can I ask you a question?" Carol spoke that night as the two of them sat together in the den before a roaring fire. The rest of the family had long since gone to bed.  

"Sure," Pete agreed.  

"What happened to you face?"  

Pete's hand instantly went to the ugly scar. "I was punished for not turning in a friend."  

Carol grimaced as she shook her head. "The things men do to each other.. I'll never understand it."  

"I hadn't realized that truly evil people came in such ordinary shapes and sizes until I was nineteen. I learned a hell of a lot real fast back then."  

Carol turned her gaze back to the fire. "I had already buried one child by the time I was nineteen."  

Pete offered a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry."  

Carol waved her hand. "Don't be. You weren't even alive back then so I can hardly see how it would have been your fault."  

"How long had you and Gary known one another?" Pete asked.  

Carol pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders. "Only a few months. I loved him but it was a friendship love more than any other. I was married to my first husband, a rather mean and heavy handed man, for twenty years before he was killed by Indians. I have only ever truly heart and soul loved one man and he broke both. I have no living children and no family..." Carol swallowed hard, her haunted gaze staring at the dancing flames. "I am all alone." 	

"I know the feeling of being alone," Pete agreed. "I lost my parents and I never had any siblings. I wandered for a long while and was bone deep lonely."  

"Well, you're not alone now. This family seems quite fond of you," Carol stated.  

Pete smiled. "Marston and his family took me in without much hesitation. I think they like picking up strays."  

"That's good for us," Carol mused. "If I'm not being too forward, could I offer you a word of advice?"  

Pete frowned. "About what?"  

"You are in love with Kaitlyn. I can see it every time you look at her. As someone who has had happiness and lost it, let me tell you that you need to grab hold of that woman and cling to her as tightly as you can for whatever time the Lord allows you to have. Don't worry about rejections, fears or doubts. Go after what you want and enjoy it. We're not promised tomorrow." Carol shrugged. "Then again, that may just be the ramblings of a broken-hearted old woman."  

"Thank you for the advice, ma'am," Pete replied, knowing he was going to take those words to heart. "Can I ask you a question about what happened yesterday?"  

"Yes you can," Carol nodded. "It's only fair. I'm not as cold-hearted as I may seem being over my tears so quickly. It's just that, when you've lost as much as I have in your life, you learn to hide the pain. You learn to expect loss and then it doesn't hurt quite so bad when people are gone."  

"No ma'am," Pete shook his head. "I don't think you're cold-hearted at all. I'm impressed by your strength."  

Carol's smile was faint. "What did you want to ask?"  

Pete picked at a tear in shirt sleeve and frowned. "What happened to Gibson's arm? When I found him he had a pretty bad wound."  

Laughter rang out. "I had a knife in my boot. That bastard didn't know what to think when I pulled it and sliced him good..." Her laughter faded. "I only wish it had been enough to save Gary."  

"Now I'm even more impressed."  

Carol shook her head. "Don't be so impressed by me. I've done my share of bad things, Pete, and my share of things to make my life harder than it had to be." She stood up slowly. "Now, I'll be bidding you goodnight and making my way to bed."  

Pete tipped his head. "Goodnight Carol." He watched her go before turning his attention back to the fire.  

Creed made his way down the stairs and the old hound hopped up on the couch beside Pete. Pete knew the dog wasn't supposed to be on the furniture but Pete didn't have the heart to kick him off.  

He scratched Creed behind the ears as he thought about what Carol had said. Tomorrow he had to find the time to talk to Kaitlyn. Tomorrow he was going to ask her to be his wife.

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

’I’m coming for you, little Kaitlyn,“ Vincent’s voice whispered in the blackness that surrounded her.

Kaitlyn couldn't see him but she could feel his hot, rancid breath upon her face and his hands were groping at her body. 


"My pa would never let you touch me," she whispered, her voice trembling. 


"Your pa is going to die soon. So is your new love. You better not let him touch your body, Kaitlyn. Your body is mine." 


"Leave Pete alone!" Kaitlyn cried with desperation. She fought wildly but to no avail as Vincent's rough hands roamed over her. A cold sweat soaked her. She couldn't see. The darkness was thick around her, like a blanket that stole her breath and caused her heart to pound. 


"You belong to me," he sneered. 


His fingertips ran up her thigh and Kaitlyn began to scream as loudly as she could as she thrashed against him. Hitting a body she could not see with her small fists. As always, she was no match for his strength. She couldn't fight him off.. he would claim her just as he always did...

---

Pete awoke to Creed's wet, stinking tongue licking his face. "Dammit, you ugly hound" he grumbled as he began drying his cheeks with his shirt sleeve.  

Creed leapt from the sofa and let out a mournful sound. The fire had nearly died. How long had he been asleep? The hound trotted to the stairs, let out a whimper and then came back.  

"What's wrong with you, you ugly beast?" Pete demanded.  

Then he heard it. A moan came from upstairs. He recognized the sound because he had heard it before. Pete didn't even think about what he was doing as he bounded up the staircase and threw open the door to Kaitlyn's room.  

She was lying on her bed, illuminated by moonlight. The sheets were tangled around her thrashing body. Her golden hair was damp with sweat and sticking to her cheeks. She swung her arms and legs as if fighting someone off.  

Suddenly she let out a scream that echoed through the room and Pete ran to the bed and scooped her up into his arms, cradling her trembling body against his chest. "Wake up, honey," he urged as he sat down upon the mattress. "Wake up now."  

"Pete?" she whispered and then suddenly her body stopped fighting and her fingers dug into his back as she clung to him.  

Pete kissed her hair. "It was just a dream, love. No one is going to hurt you."  

Pete felt eyes on his back and he turned his head to see Marston standing in the doorway with his gun in his hand. Rose and Langley were standing behind him.  

"Is everything okay?" Carol's voice sounded from down the hall.  

Langley turned and walked out of sight. "It's fine. My sister just had a dream, that's all."  

"I'm sorry I woke everyone," Kaitlyn muttered before scrambling from Pete's arms and pulling her knees into her chest as she sat against the headboard. Pete didn't move from his spot on the bed. Instead he reached out and smoothed a bit of damp hair from her cheek.  

"You can go on to bed now, Pete. Rose and I will take care of Kaitlyn."  

Pete wanted to argue and insist that he was going to stay with Kaitlyn but he knew he had no right to do that. He wasn't her husband, she was Marston's daughter and this was Marston's house.  

Panic gripped Kaitlyn as Pete began to rise from the bed. The dream had been a terrible one. She had felt the sensations, smelled the sweat, tasted the fear... yet somehow when Pete had held he in his arms, all those terrible thoughts and feelings had gone away. When Pete held her she felt warm, cherished and safe... Kaitlyn needed him.  

"Please, don't go," she whispered, reaching out and grabbing his warm, calloused hand.  

Pete took a deep breath and squared his shoulders as he faced Marston. He was either going to stay here with Kaitlyn or wind up with a bullet in him but he wouldn't leave her willingly. Not with her begging him to stay.  

"I'll take care of Kaitlyn," he stated, meeting Marston's challenging gaze head on.  

Marston's golden eyes narrowed dangerously. "I don't think that's a good idea."  

Pete stood firm. "I do."  

"Please pa..." Kaitlyn pleaded. "Please let him stay. The nightmares don't come when he's with me."  

Pete saw Marston's resolve begin to falter but the man said nothing. The air between Pete and the giant outlaw crackled. After several long tense moments and nothing but the hall clock ticking for noise, Marston took a step back.  

"I'll be right down the hall," he said and Pete knew it was a warning. He left the room without closing the door. Rose offered them a small smile, rolled her eyes and closed the door as she left.  

"Thank you, Pete," Kaitlyn whispered.  

Pete chuckled as he turned and looked down at her. "I believe I'll need to wash these trousers twice. Your pa is one scary man."  

Kaitlyn shrugged. "He's harmless really."  

Pete laughed. If there was one thing Marston Jacob wasn't, it was harmless. He pulled off his gun belt and boots, tossing them both in the floor. Kaitlyn's expression turned shy as she scooted over in the bed to give him room.  

Pete fought back his building want for her as he slid beneath the covers and she curled up to him, laying her head again this heart. Her small, slender frame was pressed against him and her arm lay draped over his stomach.  

Pete instantly felt his trousers get a little tighter and he prayed she wouldn't notice. He was sure his honest reaction to her touch would only frighten her. Damn, this was torture.  

"Why did you still have you gun and boots on?" Kaitlyn asked as they lay together in the moonlight.  

"I dozed off in the den. Creed woke me up and that's when I heard you."  

"My dream was horrible," she whispered.  

Pete gave her a comforting squeeze. "Do you want to tell me about it?"  

Pete expected her to say no but instead she began picking at the buttons on his shirt. "I only have nightmares about one of the men." Her voice was so quiet, Pete had to strain to hear her. "The night that Marston showed up, killed Gilliam and took me away, Gilliam had been in the process of selling me to another man. That man wanted Gilliam to hold me until I turned sixteen and then he was going to come back for me."  

"Wasn't Vincent the only other man there? The same man that helped have Marston arrested?"  

Kaitlyn nodded against his chest. "Yes. He fills my nightmares. I remember his touch, how badly his breath stunk and the way he seemed to take pleasure in hurting me. In my dreams he promises that he'll come for me and he'll kill my pa and tonight he said he would..."  

Kaitlyn's voice broke and she fell silent. Pete twisted around so he was lying on his side and he put his finger under her chin to raise her gaze to him. "What else did he say?"

"That he'll kill you," she whispered. Fear filled her green eyes. "He said he'd kill you and then take me away."  

Pete felt rage fill him but it was helpless rage. There wasn't anything Pete could do about it. He couldn't fight her dreams. He couldn't control what this man Vincent was doing in her mind. He wasn't foolish enough to think that he could hunt Vincent down, kill him and somehow make Kaitlyn better."  

"Kaitlyn, I'll never let him get you," Pete vowed. "I can't change what happened in your past but I can promise, here and now, that you will never be touched against your will again."  

Kaitlyn lay there in the warmth and comfort of Pete's arms and she believed him. She felt safe. She felt warm. She felt loved. She was loved by a man who she had no doubt would keep her safe from the evils in the world. In that moment all she wanted in the whole world was to let him heal her.  

"Kiss me," she whispered.  

Pete's brown eyes widened. "What?"  

"Kiss me," she repeated a little more steadily. Yes, she was afraid but she was tired of letting that stop her. Pete would not hurt her. With Pete, things would be different.

Pete had never loved her more than he did in that moment. She was trusting him and giving him a part of herself that she'd never given anyone else. Pete wasn't going to disappoint her. He laid his hand on her cheek and ran his fingertips across her jaw.  

Kaitlyn's eyes began to slip closed. "Don't close your eyes," Pete ordered gently.  

He wanted her to see him when he kissed her. He didn't want any other man slipping into her mind. Her green eyes opened wide and looked deep into his own. Kaitlyn took in a deep breath as he lowered his mouth to hers.  

Their breath mingled. Less than an inch separated their trembling lips. Pete buried his hand in her soft golden hair and then closed the distance between them.  

Kaitlyn felt her entire body fill with heat. His lips claimed hers in a kiss that was gentle yet demanding. Soft yet hungry. Kaitlyn knew she could float right off this bed and only his strong arm holding her close kept her from doing so.  

Pete ran his tongue along her bottom lip, desperate to taste her. She moaned in response and he used the opportunity to deepen the kiss. Kaitlyn stiffened at first but then her body turned to liquid as she moaned and moved as close to him as the barrier of their clothes would allow.  

Pete knew there would be no hiding his desire for her with their bodies pressed so tightly together. Never in his life had a kiss sent his head spinning the way Kaitlyn's was. Her small hands clung to him and her tongue warred with his.  

Suddenly it was all too much and Pete broke away from her, breathing had and flushed. She looked at him with a mixture of disappointment and confusion. "Why did you stop? I never knew a kiss could be like that."  

"Neither did I," Pete admitted. "And I stopped because if I had kept going I wouldn't have been able to stop and I don't think you're ready for that."  

Kaitlyn felt a delicious tremor that worked its way from the tip of her head to the bottoms of her feet. Surprisingly she felt no fear even as she felt his arousal pressing against her. All she felt was heat and longing. She had given Pete her heart and now she wanted to give him her body.  

"I'm ready, Pete."  

Pete swallowed hard and then began to choke. He coughed until his chest burned and he feared he might actually die right there on the spot. Kaitlyn's green eyes were wide as she began to beat him on the back.  

"Are you okay?" she demanded.  

Pete sat up and buried his face in his hands. Then he surprised both of them when he threw his hand back and laughed. "I'm hopeless is what I am!" Pete exclaimed. "I can't think straight around you on a normal day and you just threw me for a bit of a loop."  

Kaitlyn bit her lip and sat up, pulling her knees into her chest. "Was I too forward?"  

"You are perfect," he assured her before pressing a kiss to her brow. "But I'm not going to make love to you."  

Kaitlyn's face fell. "Oh." She felt he heart fill with pain. Of course he didn't want to make love to her—not after so many men had touched her before.  

"No! No, I didn't mean it like that!" Pete was quick to say as he cradled her face in his hands. Pete let out a long sigh and stood from the bed. He began to pace to help himself think. He rubbed his hands on his pants and when he glanced over at Kaitlyn she was watching him with the cutest look of confusion he'd ever seen his life. 	

Her lightly ached brows were drawn together, her bow shaped lips where twisted to the side and her head was tilted. "What's going on?" she asked.  

"I'll probably mess this up just like I mess up everything else," he muttered. "Here it goes. I didn't mean that I never want to make love to you, Kaitlyn, because I do want to. Bad."  

"I do too, Pete. If you're worried about scaring me, don't be. I'm still scared but I know you won't hurt me. I want you to show me the good in making love and help me forget the bad."  

Pete shoved his hands through his hair and breathed out slowly through his nose. God, was he ever tempted to hop into that bed and do exactly what the woman wanted!

"You're right, Kaitlyn. I'd never hurt you. As a matter of fact, I'd cut off my own left foot before I'd hurt you. But I'm not gonna do this backwards. And I'm not gonna go behind Marston's back and make love to you under his roof.... At least not until I'm your husband."  

"Husband?" Kaitlyn gasped. 	

Pete cursed under his breath. He was messing this up real good and proper. He went to the bed and dropped onto his knees beside it. "I love you, Kaitlyn. I died all those years ago when those men gave me this scar. But the moment I saw you, you breathed new life into me. I can't promise you a big house or fancy dresses or any of those things you deserve but I can promise you that there will never come a day when you'll have to feel lonely or wonder if I love you. I will show you every day just what you mean to me if you'll let me. Kaitlyn....." Pete stopped and frowned. "I was going to say your full name but I'm not sure what it is."  

Kaitlyn smiled through her tears. "Just Kaitlyn is fine," she whispered. She could hardly believe this was happening. Pete knew her deepest, darkest secrets. He knew about the other men. He knew she was frightened and skittish. And yet here he was still in love with her and wanting to spend forever at her side. Her mama had been right.  

A nervous grin split Pete's lips, dimpling his left cheek and puckering his scar. The scar that she no longer found alarming or ugly. Instead it was part of his charm. Physical proof of the amazing, strong and loyal man Pete was.  

"Okay, just Kaitlyn, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"  

Kaitlyn leapt from the bed and threw her arms around his neck, causing them both to tumble to the floor. She laughed happily and laid wild kisses across his face. Pete chuckled and took her face in his hands, holding her still so he could kiss her lips tenderly.  

He pulled away slowly and laid his forehead against her. "Is that a yes?"  

"That's a yes," she assured him.  

Pete smiled so wide his face nearly cracked. "Thank God." He hugged her tightly when they both got to their feet. "If you had said no I wouldn't have been above begging, pleading and crying."  

"You wouldn't have cried for me," Kaitlyn scoffed as they both settled back down upon the bed and Kaitlyn rested her head against his heart once again.  

"Yes I would have. I have no shame."  

Kaitlyn smiled. "I can't wait to tell my mama and pa that we're getting married."  

"They already knew I was going to ask," Pete admitted as he ran his hand through the long, golden strands of her hair. "Or at least your pa did."  

"How?"

"I asked his permission. I wasn't going to ask you until he said yes." Pete winked. "I said I have no shame but I have plenty of brains."  

"Thank you for doing that." Kaitlyn let out a sigh. "This is going to be hard on him."  

"I don't blame him for taking it hard." Pete held her a little tighter. "Losing you sure don't sound easy."  

"But we're not going to leave Windfall, are we?" Kaitlyn demanded worriedly, rising up on her elbow to look at him.  

Pete smiled and shook his head. "Not unless you want to."  

"I don't want to."  

"Okay then. I actually got a job offer. The pay would be good and I would be able to support us."  

"What kind of job?" Kaitlyn asked even as she marveled at how natural and easy it was to lay in Pete's arms this way and talk about life and their future.  

"The townspeople want me to be the law around here," Pete replied, carefully gauging her reaction. "They would pay me a salary."  

Kaitlyn studied his face for a long moment. She wanted to tell him not to do it. She wanted to be selfish and keep him safe and at her side always. But she couldn't do that. It was easy to see that Pete wanted this. He lived for serving, protecting and bringing justice. It was in his blood and Kaitlyn loved him enough to swallow her own fears and support him.  

"You have to take the job," she said with a smile.  

"Are you sure?" Pete frowned. "I've thought about this a lot, sweetheart, and I won't take it if you don't want me to."  

"Being a lawman is what you love," Kaitlyn countered.  

Pete brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles gently. "I love you more."  

"I want you to be a lawman," Kaitlyn assured him, a tear gathering in her eye. She laid he hand on his scarred cheek. "Thank you, Pete."  

"For what?"  

"For loving me despite my past."  

Pete shook his head. "Thank you Kaitlyn."  

Kaitlyn frowned. "For what?"  

"For letting me."  

---

Rose was sitting up in bed with her arms crossed under her breasts and her brow raised when Marston came in. He grinned sheepishly as he slid out of his clothes. "What?" he asked when her gaze remained annoyed.  

"Where's the glass of water you were supposed to be bringing me from the kitchen?"  

Marston rubbed the back of his neck and cleared his throat. "I forgot."  

"Oh and when was this?" she snapped. "When you were walking real slowly past Kaitlyn's room? Or perhaps when you had your big, nosy ear pressed against her door?"  

"I'm not nosy!" he countered defensively. "I'm cautious."  

Rose shook her head and her look was one of complete exasperation. "You are too nosy, Marston Jacobs. You need to leave the two of them alone."  

Marston growled and strode toward the bed. "This is my damn house and I'll put my big, nosy ear to whichever door I want to," he grumbled as he slid beneath the covers. The fact that Rose was naked beneath that sheet she was wrapped in had not escaped his attention and Marston could think of better things to do with their time than argue over the personality of his ear.  

"Technically Jeremiah gave 

me this house,“ Rose reminded him. “And you had better not have disturbed them.”

Marston rolled his eyes and turned his back to her as he flipped onto his side. "If you're in a fighting mood, I'm going to bed." He reached out and killed the light beside the bed.  

They lay in silence for several long minutes. Marston felt Rose settling down beneath the covers only to have her let out an irritated sigh and roll onto her side, pressing her soft body up against him.  

He trembled as her lips brushed against the scarred flesh on his back and her arm slipped around him. Marston took her hand in his and kissed her fingers but said nothing. "Are we fighting?" she asked softly.  

Marston smiled in the dark. "You were fighting. I was going to sleep."  

"You shouldn't have been snooping," she scolded sternly.  

"I'm a grown man and I'll snoop if I want to," he countered stubbornly.  

"So....?" She urged after several more quiet moments.  

Marston raised his brow. "What?"  

"So, are they getting married?"  

Marston chuckled. "That's none of our business. It's not nice to snoop."  

Rose pinched his nipple, knowing it was the only real weakness on the man's nearly indestructible body. He growled and swatted at her hand. "Damn you woman! That tickles!"  

"Tell me!" she whined in his ear.  

Marston flipped over and gathered her into his arms. "You're no better than me," he stated and before Rose could reply, he covered her mouth with his and had her forgetting that she had even asked a question.

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

“So, what you’re telling me is that you’re going to marry my daughter, become the town sheriff and you want me, an outlaw who has been hanged for his crimes, to make the bars and locks for your jail?” Marston asked from behind his coffee cup the next morning.

Pete nodded as he stuck a forkful of eggs into his mouth. "Yeah, that's what I'm telling you."  

"Better make this Irish coffee," Marston grumbled before standing up and walking to the cabinet to get the whiskey bottle.  

"I'm so happy for you!" Rose said brightly as she gave Kaitlyn a warm smile.  

Kaitlyn blushed and looked down at her plate while Pete reached under the table and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.  

"I'm impressed, Pete," Langley spoke up. "You sure have grown a pair since you came to town."  

"Langley!" Rose exclaimed as Carol hid her laughter behind a fake cough.  

Langley's ears reddened. "What?" he mumbled.  

"You spend too much damn time with your uncles," Marston scolded him. "You should know better than to speak that way around the ladies."  

Pete saw a flash of irritation and annoyance pass over Langley's face but if Marston noticed it, he gave no indication. Instead, Marston turned to Pete. "I'll make your damn bars."

Pete nodded. "Thank you, sir."  

"I'm only doing it so you won't leave town with my little girl."  

"I'm not going anywhere, pa," Lucy assured him as she clambered into his lap.  

Marston smiled warmly at the dark haired girl. "I was talking about my big little girl." He poked her nose. "I know you're not going anywhere, nugget. If you left who would feed Creed sausage under the table?"  

Lucy's face became the picture of seriousness. "I don't do that." She was batting her lashes to further prove her innocence when Creed came out from under the table licking his lips. "Well, maybe I do it sometimes," Lucy admitted with a giggle.  

"So when is this wedding going to be?" Carol asked.  

Pete looked at Kaitlyn and she shrugged. "I don't know."  

"Soon. It should be soon," Carol insisted. Then she wiped her mouth with her napkin. "That is if you don't mind me voicing my opinion. It's just that life has no guarantees and waiting doesn't seem to make sense when two people are as in love as you are."  

"Soon sounds good to me," Pete agreed. Hell, he'd marry Kaitlyn today if the woman wanted to.  

"Paul Sanchez can perform the ceremony. He does all of them here in town," Rose said thoughtfully. "And I'm sure that Anita at the shop will have a dress that will work perfectly. And Doctor Rankin has that large empty building at the edge of town and it will be the perfect place for the wedding."  

"I don't need a big wedding, mama," Kaitlyn insisted with a shake of her head.  

Rose smiled. "Yes you do. You deserve it. Doesn't she deserve it, Pete?"  

"Yes ma'am," Pete replied honestly.  

"One week," Rose nodded. "One week should give us plenty of time."  

"One week?!" Marston and Kaitlyn demanded in unison.  

"Is that too long?" Rose asked, the glance she through in Marston's direction was clearly a dare.  

Marston grunted. "Not at all."  

"I'm getting married," Kaitlyn whispered, as if the very idea shocked her.  

Pete leaned over and pressed his lips to her ear. "You won't regret it. I promise."  

Kaitlyn leaned into his embrace as his arms went around her shoulders. She was surprised by how quickly all this was happening and yet it felt as natural as breathing. 	

Marston made a noise as if he were in physical pain and he quickly stood. "I'll be in the barn," he grumbled before leaving the room.  

Kaitlyn frowned when she heard the front door slam.  

"I'll talk to him." Rose sighed. "He really is happy for you both."  

Kaitlyn shook her head as she stood up. "I'll go talk to him. I hate to see him hurting this way."  

Pete barely fought the urge to go after her when Kaitlyn left. Fear that Marston would convince her to change her mind about him, filled Pete. He tried to tell himself the fear was baseless but it reared its ugly head just the same.  

He felt a tug on his sleeve and looked beside him to see Lucy staring up at him with her big blue eyes. "What?" he asked with a smile.  

"I want you to play poker with me."  

"What does a little thing like you know about playing poker?" Pete asked.  

His smile grew when she rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest in a manner that made it very clear who her pa was. "My whole family is outlaws," she reminded him. "I know a thing or five 'bout poker."  

Pete chuckled. "Alright then, little one. Let's go play." He stood up and stretched his legs.  

"You too, big brother," Lucy urged, pointing her short, chubby finger at Langley. "You owe me for cheating last time."  

"I don't cheat," Langley argued, his ears reddening.  

"Oh yeah," Lucy snorted. "And all decks have five aces?"  

"C'mon, Langley. Come play poke with us," Pete said.  

"Well fine. But only to prove I'm not a cheat." They followed Lucy from the kitchen and Langley swatted Pete on the arm. "You know I just realized something."  

"What's that?"  

"You and my sister are like one of those dime store novels."  

"And how is that exactly?" Pete asked as they entered the den. He'd never read a dime store novel in his life.  

"The wounded sheriff and the outlaw's daughter, madly in love." Langley's expression turned sterner. "You better not hurt my sister."  

"I can promise you now that I'll never hurt your sister," Pete assured him.  

Lucy tossed the deck of cards on the small end table. "We gonna play or chit chat?"  

Langley rolled his eyes. "And pa keeps saying that 

I spend too much time with Uncle Jeremiah!“

---

Kaitlyn entered the barn and blinked in the shadows. She searched until she found her pa sitting on a hay bale in an empty stall. He had his hat in his hands as he stared down at the dirty floor beneath his boots.  

"This is hard for me, Kaitlyn," he said before she had time to speak.  

Kaitlyn sat down beside him and folded her hands in her lap. "Why pa? Is there something about Pete you don't like?"  

"No," Marston shook his head. "He's a good man and he'll be good to you. If I didn't believe that I would have killed him by now." Marston sighed. "He's not good enough for you but he'll make you a good husband."  

"Then why aren't you happy?"

Marston's jaw tensed beneath the stubble and the circular scar on his cheek shook. "I spent most of my life not caring about anyone," Marston said, his voice thicker than Kaitlyn had ever heard it before. "Then I met your mama and Langley and I found you and things changed. I changed. You were just a skinny, quiet, scared little girl when I brought you home.  You transformed right in front of my eyes and now you're a beautiful woman with strong beliefs and a talent for healing the sick and bringing out the best in people. I am more proud of you than anything else in this whole world."  

Kaitlyn felt tears fill her eyes and she threw her arms around Marston's neck. He sat there as still and unmoving as stone and continued to stare at the floor but Kaitlyn knew it was fear of appearing weak that kept him from moving. She could tell that he was struggling with emotions that he normally only revealed to mama. Kaitlyn had heard him being soft and tender hearted with her several times when he didn't realize that anyone was listening. There was a loving, caring, gentle soul inside the mountain of a man but he'd rather die than let it show.

"I love you, pa," Kaitlyn said, keeping one arm around him and laying her chin on his shoulder. "You saved me and you've taught me so much about life. You have loved and supported me and always been a man who takes care of his family."

"Stop," Marston grumbled. "You're giving me a headache."  

Kaitlyn kissed his cheek and he stiffened as he sniffed, his eyes still glued stubbornly to the floor. "No, I'm not going to stop. You and mama have taught me how to be strong. I am in love with Pete, pa, and so much of my fear just seems to disappear when I'm with him. He knows the truth about my past and he loves me just the same as you do mama. I'm nervous about leaving the house and starting a life with Pete but I know that with the lessons you've taught me and with our love, Pete and I can do this. You can let go now, pa. I'm gonna be just fine."  

She nudged him a little. "And you'll never lose me. You'll always be my favorite."

"I better be," Marston replied. He looked up at her and Kaitlyn saw the redness around his golden eyes.  

Her heart broke. "Do you want me to tell Pete I changed my mind?"  

"No." Marston swallowed hard. "Just be patient with me if I walk away now and then. It's hard to see your little girl grow up."  

"I'll always be your little girl," Kaitlyn insisted.  

Marston sighed and hugged her tight. "Get inside now. It's too cold for you to be staying out here."  

"Are you coming?" Kaitlyn asked as she got to her feet.  

"I'll be along shortly."  

Kaitlyn nodded and left the barn. "Is he okay?" Rose asked when she stepped back into the kitchen.  

Kaitlyn simply shook her head and, without another word, Rose grabbed her coat and was gone. Kaitlyn went to the sink and began helping Carol with the dishes. "You're lucky to have a family like the one you have."  

"I know," Kaitlyn replied.  

"How would you like your hair done for your wedding?" Carol asked.  

Kaitlyn frowned and absently touched the golden strands. "I hadn't thought about that."

"Well I once worked in a brothel..." Carol laughed at Kaitlyn's stunned expression. "I was a few years younger then," she added with a wink.

"I uh..." Kaitlyn stammered, unsure of just how she was supposed to reply.  

"Don't be embarrassed! I'm not," Carol insisted with a wave of her hand. "I've lived an exciting life even if it has been a painful one. I was married to a man I didn't truly love for twenty long and tedious years. When he died, I was free to flourish. I loved an outlaw and I've bedded lawmen. I have ridden the plains on cattle drives and rode with a gang. I have worked in brothels and volunteered in churches. A full life is what I've had."  

Kaitlyn nodded. "It sure sounds that way."  

Carol smiled. "As I was saying, I worked in a brothel and learned a thing or two about styling hair. I'd like to do something nice for your family since you've all been so kind to me. Would you allow me to do your hair for the wedding?"  

"That would be nice," Kaitlyn replied. She felt so sorry for Carol. The woman put on a brave face but Kaitlyn was sure she was hurting and lonely.  

"Great! And don't worry, my dear," Carol assured her with a wink and a quirk of her lips. "When I'm done with you the last place you'll like you belong is in a brothel."

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

Carol had been right. Kaitlyn certainly didn’t look like a woman who belonged in a brothel. She barely recognized herself as she stood in front of the full length mirror at the doctor’s.

Her long golden tresses were intricately styled upon the back of her head and Carol had woven pearl beads throughout them. She had left several long tendrils hanging around Kaitlyn's face and neck and had added curl to these so they twisted and caught the sunlight.  

The white satin and lace dress Kaitlyn wore, fit her much like a second skin in the bodice, accentuating her tiny figure. It flared out at her hips and flowed to the floor, making her feel every bit a princess. The neckline of the dress had swooped dangerously low so Kaitlyn had added a lace inlay to save her modesty and her father's heart.  

"You look beautiful," Rose whispered, coming to stand beside her.  

"I'm nervous mama," Kaitlyn admitted.  

Rose fastened a dainty gold chain around Kaitlyn's neck. "Why?"  

Kaitlyn folded her trembling hands in front of her. "What if he changes his mind?"

"My dear, a man would have to be deaf, blind and dumb to change his mind about marrying you after seeing you beauty today," Carol assured her comfortingly as she sprayed a bit of perfume on Kaitlyn's wrists.  

Kaitlyn rubbed wrists together absentmindedly as she studied herself in the mirror. "I look so different."  

"It's called happiness, sweetheart, and every woman should look like that on her wedding day," Rose replied. Kaitlyn saw her mama fiddling with the cameo necklace she had worn around her neck everyday since Kaitlyn had known her. Marston had given that to her on their first Christmas together and Rose never took it off, though usually she wore it hidden beneath her dress.  

Kaitlyn knew her mama must be a bit sad because she always plucked at that necklace when she was thinking hard about something.  

"Where is pa?" Kaitlyn asked.  

"He'll be along shortly," Rose assured her.  

"I'm gonna get married when I grow up," Lucy announced as she bounced into the room with a cinnamon stick clutched tightly in her hand. She sat on the edge of the bed and dangled her feet.  

"You better not get that candy on your dress," Rose warned.  

Lucy glanced down at the white lace. "I won't mama. Do you want to know who I'm marrying?"  

"Who are you marrying?" Kaitlyn asked with a smile as she sat down beside her sister.  

"Pa. He's the handsomest man in the whole world," Lucy boasted.  

"Thank you, nugget, but I think you mama might just want to keep me for herself," Marston warned as he stepped into the room, looking much different than his usual self in his fancy suit and vest.  

Rose winked at her youngest child. "I'll share." She kissed Marston's cheek. "Come on ladies. Let's give these two a bit of alone time."  

Marston turned to Kaitlyn when they found themselves alone. "You look awfully pretty."  

Kaitlyn smiled and hugged her pa tight. "Do you think Pete will like it?"  

Marston grunted as he pulled away and laid his hand on the worn revolver resting in the aged gun belt that contrasted sharply with his fancy clothes. "He will if he knows what's good for him."  

---

Pete paced the stage of the large empty building as the crowd inside grew. The din of conversation was loud in the air but Pete heard no details. The building was vast. The townsfolk used it for weddings, funerals, annual dances and the occasional church service if a preacher happened to be passing through.  

Today it was all decked out for a wedding. His wedding. Fabric sashes draped the ceiling and stage. Chairs and tables had been brought in and the tables were covered with soft red cloth. Food and refreshments lined the back wall and a band was waiting in the wing to provide entertainment once the wedding was over.  

Pete looked at the white satin runner that Kaitlyn would soon be walking down to him and he swallowed hard.  

Married. Pete was getting married. It was times like this when Pete missed his family the most. He stopped backing, put his back against the wall and closed his eyes. His pa and Marston would have hated each other. Pete's pa had been a man with a firm belief of right and wrong. In his opinion life was black and white. Marston was most certainly a shade of gray.  

But Pete's mama would have loved Kaitlyn. In many ways Kaitlyn was a lot like his mama had been. Soft spoken but strong and a natural caretaker.  

"It better be my sister you're thinking about with that smile on your face," Langley's good natured voice teased.  

Pete opened his eyes. "This thing should be starting soon, shouldn't it?"  

Langley grimaced and laid his hand over his rumbling stomach. "I sure hope so. That food over there looks awful good and I'm awful hungry."  

Pete laughed. Langley was always hungry. "Go eat," he insisted.  

Langley's blue eyes lit with amusement. "Hell no! Do you see those little old women over there? They're guarding that food table the way a mother hen guards her babies and they ain't afraid to bust a man's shins with those canes of theirs."  

Pete laughed but his humor was short-lived. At that moment, Blanche stepped up to the piano and said it was time. Pete tugged at the collar of his shirt which suddenly felt too tight and prayed like hell that Kaitlyn wouldn't change her mind about him.  

---

"Do you Pete Mears take this woman Kaitlyn Marston to be your lawfully wedded wife?" Paul Sanchez asked as they stood together beneath the archway.  

Pete looked into those deep green eyes he loved so much and nodded. "I do," he vowed proudly for everyone to hear.  

"And do you, Kaitlyn Marston, take this man Pete Mears to be your lawfully wedded husband?"  

Her voice was soft but sure when she replied. "I do."  

"Then by the power given to me by the city of Windfall, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."  

Pete needed no further urging to do just that. He took Kaitlyn into his arms and gave her a long, slow kiss that would have been highly inappropriate had this been a church wedding. Whistles filled the air and when Pete pulled away, Kaitlyn was blushing from top of her head down to the bodice of her dress.  

"I love you, Kaitlyn," he whispered in her ear and she was smiling as she echoed his statement.  

Soon they were swept away by the crowd. Most folks were just happy to have a chance to dress up and break the monotony of a Dakota winter but there were those who were genuinely happy for the newly married couple.  

Pete danced with the old ladies who'd been guarding the food table and he realized with amusement that Langley used that opportunity to load a plate down with every last crumb it could hold and take cover in a back corner.  He watched Kaitlyn dance with Marston, Doctor Rankin and eventually Langley.  

Finally, Pete managed to get ahold of her and he held her tight as they spun together. "I got us a room at the hotel for tonight," Pete whispered in her ear.  

"You did?" she asked, trembling as his lips brushed her ear.  

"Yeah," Pete grinned. "I figured our wedding night would be a lot more comfortable without having your pa's ear pressed against the door."  

Kaitlyn's light laughter filled the air. "You're probably right."

"You look beautiful, Kaitlyn."  

"Carol did my hair," she admitted.  

Pete wrapped a loose tendril around his finger. "I can't wait to watch it fall down your back tonight."  

Kaitlyn leaned in closer to him and then she let out a yelp of pain when his boot come down on her foot. "Sorry!" Pete gasped as he pulled away. "I never was much of a dancer."  

Kaitlyn simply laughed and threw her arms around his neck.  

The wide, double doors to the building were suddenly thrown open and the winter gusted in with a vengeance. The draperies and decorations blew wildly and the crowd gasped.  

"Are we late for the party?" Jeremiah asked with a laugh.

Kaitlyn smiled, released her hold on Pete and ran to her uncles. She hugged them each in turn and when she saw the surprise on their faces, Kaitlyn realized it was the first time she'd ever hugged them.  

"Outside now," Marston grumbled as he grabbed Duke and Jeremiah by the arm and dragged them out the door. Rose, Kaitlyn, Pete and Langley followed close behind.  

"What the hell Marston?" Jeremiah demanded. "It's cold out here."  

"What the hell are you two doing here?" Marston snapped, releasing his hold on them.  

"Nice suit," Duke mused with a grin. "I thought we were welcome anytime?"  

"You are," Rose assured them.  

"There has to a reason you showed up here in the middle of January," Marston growled. "Something brought you up here. What is it?"  

"It's actually closer to the end of January than the middle," Jeremiah corrected.  

Duke quickly intervened before Marston's fist could connect with Jeremiah's nose.  "There's nothing going on that can't wait until after the celebrations are over. This looks like a wedding and it surely looks like Kaitlyn is the bride."  

Kaitlyn smiled, her happiness too great to be diminished by the trouble her uncles might have brought news of. "I am!" she said brightly.  

Duke studied Pete carefully. "You the groom?"  

Pete's arm slid around Kaitlyn's waist and he gave her a squeeze. "That's right."  

"I remember you, I think." Duke nodded. "Yeah I remember seeing you before minus that mess on your face. You're that damn lawman from Millerton."  

"A lawman?!" Jeremiah exclaimed, his face reddening as his fists clenched. "You let my damn niece marry a lawman?!"  

"I love him, Uncle Jeremiah," Kaitlyn said quickly as she attempted to place herself between the two brothers. Pete pulled her back because as far as he was concerned both brothers seemed ready to kill one another.  

"Jesus H. Christ, Mary and Joseph and the fifteen apostles!" Jeremiah blustered. "What the hell is going on with this family?!"  

"I don't think there were fifteen," Langley muttered. Rose threw him a glance that made it clear she expected him to hush.  

"You've got a lot of nerve showing up and making a scene at my daughter's wedding," Marston warned.  

"You have lost your mind!" Jeremiah insisted, tossing his hands in the air. "First you settle down and start obeying the law, then you start adopting kids and you leave me high and dry to fend for myself without my brother by my side anymore. Now Duke is talking like he's tired of roaming and Kaitlyn is marrying a damned lawman! Am I the only one who hasn't gone completely crazy?"

"Can I just..." Pete tried to speak up but the brother's glared at him.  

"No!" they spat in unison.  

"What the hell is wrong with these two?" Pete whispered to Rose.  

She rolled her eyes and dragged her hand across her face. "They're idiots when they get around one another. All they want to do is hit, choke and shoot each other."  

"They're always like this?" Pete asked.  

Kaitlyn sighed. "Yes. At least until they get it out of their systems."  

"It's cold out here," Duke addressed those currently not ready to throw fists. "What do you we say we go in where it warmer and leave these two men who, unfortunately, are the closest things to sons I have, to kill each other if that's what they choose to do?"

"I hope they don't kill each other," Kaitlyn said as she wrung her hands and glanced over shoulder at her father and uncle while Duke ushered her toward the door.  

"Don't worry about them. They haven't killed each other yet and I'm sure they won't do it today."  

"Duke, be honest with me," Rose insisted. "Is there something bad coming?"

Duke knew he couldn't lie to Rose. "It can wait until later," he promised. "Today is a day for happiness." Duke turned his attention to Pete. "I guess it's a good thing Marston didn't let me shoot you like I wanted to."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Pete replied absently. He was too worried about what news Duke and Jeremiah had brought with them to find much enjoyment in conversation. His life was just beginning with Kaitlyn, he didn't need trouble coming and hurting that.  

"Is everything okay?" Carol's voice called out as the woman fought her way through the crowd toward them.  

Her eyes fell on Duke and she froze. Color drained from her face and her jaw went slack. Pete noticed her hands begin to shake nearly as badly as her chin trembled.  

He glanced toward Duke and saw that the man wore roughly the same expression.  

Rose obviously noticed too. "Do you two know each other?"  

Carol seemed to shake off her shock and sadness and she squared her shoulders. "No. No we don't know one another."  

Duke scratched at his graying beard. "I'm going to the house. I'll meet y'all out there whenever you get back."  

Duke all but ran out the door just as Jeremiah and Marston came back in. Marston's jaw was red and welted and Jeremiah was going to be sporting a fairly decent black eye.  

"Are you two done?" Rose demanded of them.  

They wore twin sheepish grins. "Yes ma'am," Jeremiah replied.  

"For now," Marston added.  

Kaitlyn frowned at Carol who was still staring at the doorway as if she'd seen a ghost. "Carol, are you okay?"  

"Yes," Carol replied, looking her way and forcing a smile.  

Before Kaitlyn could say anything else, Jeremiah came sweeping in and dragged her to the dance floor. "You can't have a wedding and not dance with your favorite uncle," he stated. "Of course I can't see why you'd want to get married at all," he added, twirling her around with practiced ease.  

"Because I'm in love, Uncle Jeremiah."  

"And what's with the hugging? You're a lot more touchy feely than I remember."  

Kaitlyn smiled. "I'm not as afraid anymore and Pete is a lot of the reason why."  

Jeremiah winked. "I don't need to hear about how he's helped you like to be touched." He wiggled his eyebrows and Kaitlyn blushed.

"Nothing like that has happened!" she assured him quickly. "He's a complete gentleman and wanted to wait until we were married."  

"And....?" Jeremiah urged. "Where've you been staying?"  

Kaitlyn frowned. "Mama and pa's house."  

Jeremiah barked with laughter. "That's the real reason he's kept his hands to himself and his trousers buttoned! At least he has half a brain since he knows not to push my hot-headed little brother too far." Jeremiah shook his head. "I just wish he wasn't a damn lawman."  

"Just don't break the law when you're in town and I can't see how the two of you will have any problem," Kaitlyn countered.  

Jeremiah's nose wrinkled. "They smell funny."  

"Who does?"  

"Lawmen."  

Kaitlyn simply laughed and shook her head. "Do you know Carol? She and Duke seemed to recognize one another."  

Jeremiah shrugged. "Nope. But Duke and I aren't together all the time. She might be somebody he sees when he's not with me or she could be someone from before I started riding with him."  

Kaitlyn sighed. "They looked so sad when they saw each other."  

"Duke has broken his fair share of hearts," Jeremiah replied. "Speaking of breaking hearts, I'm going to give you back to you 

husband so I can go break a couple of my own.“

"Be nice, Uncle Jeremiah," Kaitlyn teased. "Don't make my husband arrest you."  

"I'd have to shoot him if he tried," Jeremiah replied with a wink. He walked away leaving Kaitlyn to wonder if he was serious. When it came to Jeremiah, you never could tell.

---

“Damn it all to hell,” Duke muttered from atop his horse as he took another drink from his stolen bottle of whiskey.

Carol Brown.  

How long had it been since he'd seen that damned woman? Twenty years? Twenty-five? Hell, he wasn't sure. He could have gone the rest of his life without seeing her and he would have been just fine.

Duke decided that he'd just have to do his best to avoid her. He'd warn Marston, protect the family and then get the hell away from North Dakota and Carol.  

His heart wasn't nearly ready to be around that one woman rodeo, and the platter of regrets she came with, a second time.  

---

"Are you ready to head to the hotel, Mrs. Mears?" Pete whispered in Kaitlyn's ear later that evening after the crowd had begun to clear.  

"I think I am, Mr. Mears," Kaitlyn replied with a shiver of anticipation.  

"Nope not a good idea," Jeremiah countered, popping up behind them and causing Kaitlyn to jump. "We all need to be heading out to the house."  

"If you don't mind, I'd like to have a night alone with my wife," Pete countered.  

Jeremiah chuckled. "And I'd like to have a whore attached to my pecker and a bottomless barrel of whiskey, but I don't see that happening either."  

"Jeremiah!" Rose exclaimed.  

Jeremiah's face took on a serious expression as he met Marston's gaze. "I really think we should all be out at the house."  

Marston nodded. "Alright then. Let's get out there so you can tell us what the hell is going on," he agreed, adjusting a sleeping Lucy on his shoulder.  

"Are you coming Carol?" Rose asked when the woman hesitated at the door.  

Carol's blue eyes narrowed and then she squared her shoulders. "Yes. Yes, I'm coming."

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

“Dammit!” Marston roared just before his fist connected with the wall, crashing through the bright yellow plaster.

Kaitlyn gasped and Pete's arms tightened around her. Langley was leaned against the wall and his shoulders were tense. Duke and Jeremiah were standing side by side next to the fire and Rose and Carol were sitting on the sofa opposite of Kaitlyn and Pete. Lucy was sound asleep upstairs with Creed standing guard beside her bed.  

Kaitlyn was trying desperately to wrap her mind around what Duke and Jeremiah had just told them. Vincent was coming. He and his gang of murdering outlaws were coming for them.  

Vincent would kill her family and take her away just as he had always promised to in her dreams!  

Breathing became difficult as her heart pounded in her chest, blood roared in her ears and her vision swam. Memories flooded Kaitlyn's mind and tears filled her eyes. She wrapped her arms tight around herself and began to rock back and forth.  

Pete stood from the sofa and then crouched down in front of her, taking her hands in his. "Kaitlyn, honey, no one is going to hurt you," he soothed. "I would never, 

never let him have you. He’d have to kill me first and I may not be the fastest or the strongest but I don’t die easy.“

Kaitlyn simply shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut tight. "Kaitlyn, open your eyes and look at me," he ordered sternly. She did as he said. Her green eyes were bright with fear. Pete hoped it would be him that got to put a bullet in that bastard's head. "Do you trust me?" he asked her. "Do you trust me to keep you safe? I swear to you I will. You don't have a single thing to be worried about from that man."  

Kaitlyn slowly nodded and Pete kissed her knuckles before settling himself down beside her on the sofa once more. Marston strode over to the sofa and stood before them. "Why the hell would Kaitlyn think she needs to be afraid of that man?" he demanded, blood trickling from his knuckles.  

"It's nothing.." Kaitlyn lied, her chin trembling.  

Marston growled. "Don't lie to me, dammit. I'm not in the mood."

Pete got to his feet and stood toe to toe with the giant outlaw. "Don't speak to my wife that way," he warned. "She is scared and the only damn reason you're so mad is because all of this is your fault. If you'd have made sure that bastard was dead then none of this would be happening."  

"Don't you dare blame Marston for this!" Rose snapped, leaping to her feet.  

"He's a big boy," Pete spat. "He can handle it."  

Marston's fist shot out but Pete dodged and his punch went wide. "Stop it!" Kaitlyn screamed and a strained silence followed he outburst. She whimpered. "Just stop please."  

Marston raised his hands and took several steps back. Rose and Pete both sat back down.  

"Kaitlyn, why do you feel as if this man would have a special interest in you?" Carol asked, realizing that the family was far too on edge to speak reasonably to one another.  

Kaitlyn took a deep steadying breath. "The night that pa rescued me, Vincent had been in the process of buying me from Gilliam." Kaitlyn rubbed her hands up and down the lace sleeves of her dress. "I have dreams and in them he comes to get me. He tells me that I'm his, that he owns me and he'll kill whoever stands in his way of having me."  

"Is that right?" Marston growled. Without another word he stormed to the gun cabinet by the wall and pulled out a rifle. He slung it over his shoulder before gathering boxes of ammunition in his hands.  

"What are you doing?" Rose demanded, walking to him.  

"No one is harming my family. I'm riding out to meet him and whatever men he's bringing with him and I'm going to kill every damn one of them."  

"Marston, that's suicide and you know it," Duke argued.  

Langley stepped forward. "I'll come with you, pa."  

Marston glared at his son. "You won't go anywhere near that man." He sighed when Langley's expression filled with hurt. "I need you here, Langley, to protect your mama and sisters."  

"Marston, can we talk?" Rose asked, crossing her arms under her breasts and tapping her foot.  

"No. I'm going after him."  

"Marston, Jeremiah and I were a good three days ahead of Vincent at least. We've got plenty of time to get some rest. Jeremiah and I have been riding hard for weeks and could use some down time before we go riding against Vincent," Duke insisted.  

"You're both riding with me?" Marston demanded.  

Duke and Jeremiah shared a look, rolled their eyes and Jeremiah nodded. "Of course we are."  

"What did you think?" Duke asked. "That we'd just come riding in, warn you and then leave you to fend for yourself?"  

"Yes, because that's what you're good at isn't it 

Duke ?“ Carol hissed. “Riding in, taking what you want and then riding back out and leaving those who trusted you to fend for themselves?”

The den fell silent as Duke and Carol stared hard at one another for several long moments. Finally Duke scratched at his beard, turned his back on her and sighed. "Are you gonna wait and do this the sensible way or ride out now and get your fool head blown off?" he demanded of Marston.  

"Don't talk to me like a child," Marston grumbled, sliding the rifle off his back and placing it in the cabinet.  

"Good. Now I'm going to go get some sleep because I ain't as young as I used to be," Duke stated.  

"You can sleep in the room behind the kitchen. Pete won't be using it," Rose offered.  

Duke spared a quick glance at Carol before shaking his head. "No, I'd rather sleep in the barn."  

"Is my room still free?" Jeremiah questioned once Duke had left. When Rose nodded he disappeared up the stairs.  

"I'm going to bed too," Marston grumbled. He kissed Rose's brow and paused behind Kaitlyn, laying his hand on her shoulder. "You don't need to worry, Kaitlyn. Ain't nobody gonna lay hands on you, your mama, Lucy or Langley as long as I've got a breath in my body to protect you with."

"I don't need protected anymore, Pa," Langley countered. "I'm a grown man."  

Rose patted his arm gently. "Get on up to bed, grown man."  

Moments later Pete, Kaitlyn and Carol found themselves alone in the den. "Are you okay?" Pete asked Kaitlyn gently.  

She shook her head and curled up closer against him. "No."  

Pete simply kissed her head. He knew there was nothing he could say that would make her feel any better.  

"Carol, I can't help but notice that you and my Uncle Duke seem to know one another," Kaitlyn said several moments later.  

"Yes we do," Carol agreed, staring into the fire. "Or at least we did many years ago. Things did not end well and I had hoped I would never see him again."  

"It's a small world, I guess," Pete said, getting to his feet. "Come on, Kaitlyn. You need to get some rest."  

Pete helped Kaitlyn to her feet and led her away.  

Carol watched them walk away and took a determined breath. She had never been a woman to hide her anger, mince her words or hide behind shyness—at least not since she'd met Duke all those years ago and he'd awaken the woman lost inside the shell she had once been.  

She had a few things to say to Duke and he was going to hear them whether he wanted to or not. That snake in the grass had run from her twenty-six years ago but he wasn't going to be able to run this time.  

Carol pulled on a coat, grabbed a lantern and headed outside. It was dark and the air was frigid so Carol hastened her steps as she made her way to the barn.  

"Duke?" she called out as she closed the door to block the wind. There was a light lit in a back stall but when Carol walked to it, the stall was empty. "Are you honestly hiding from me? What happened to that tough, confident outlaw who didn't back down from anything?"  

"He got old, tired and beat down by oppressive, big-mouthed women who don't know when to just walk away."  

"Is that right?" Carol asked, looking up toward the loft where Duke's voice had come from. She saw a ladder and sat down her lantern as she began to climb it.  

"Don't climb that ladder in a dress," Duke scolded. "You'll fall and hurt yourself."  

Carol snorted. "Don't pretend you care. I gave you everything I had back then, Duke, and lost more than that, and you didn't care."  

"You weren't the only one that lost something," Duke grumbled. "And I never asked you to give me a damn thing."  

"Same old bastard," Carol panted as she pulled herself over the loft and flopped down on a hay bale. She was quite a bit older now than she had been the last time she'd climbed into a barn loft. Slowly Carol turned her head to Duke. The only man in her life to make her feel wild and passionate with desire. The only man who had ever truly had her heart. "You took what you wanted and then you cut and ran."  

Duke shook his head. "I wasn't what you needed."  

"You were what I wanted."  

"You were a fool."  

"I was in love," Carol countered.  

Duke nodded. "And that made you a fool."  

"Well at least those days are over," Carol snapped, doing her best to pretend as if his words hadn't cut her to the core. "You look like hell," she added and she wished it was the truth. In reality he looked much as she remembered, only older. He had the same six foot rangy build. The same long legs were stretched out in front of him as he lounged on a bale of hay. The same lean arms were folded over the same broad chest encased in blue chambray.  

His hat and coat had been discarded and were lying beside him. His eyes were the same nearly coal black color that Carol remembered and there were still amber lights that seemed to dance within them. The lines around them, caused by years of squinting into the sunlight, had grown deeper. He had the same thick beard on his face, though it was more gray now than black, and the same assortment of scars littered his face adding to his rugged appeal.  

He raised one thick brow and tilted his head as he studied her. "You're still beautiful."  

Duke let his gaze roam up and down her and felt a pull in his chest he assumed was due to old age. He had hoped to never remember the feelings that she had stirred in him. As a younger man he had run from those feelings—as an older man he'd begun to long for them.  

Still was still all softness and curves. Her eyes were that same icy blue with the power to stop his heart and her lips were still full and kissable. While her hair was now heavy with gray, Duke could still see the dusting of ebony blackness it had once possessed. She was tired and there were many new wrinkles on her pale skin but there was no denying her beauty.  

"You're still nothing but the devil in disguise, aren't you?" Carol snapped as she fidgeted on her hay bale and averted he gaze. "You still say whatever lies you need to in order to get what you want."  

"I have never once lied to you," Duke argued. "You are nothing but a sharp-tongued, quick-witted brat of a woman and I never once told you anything different."  

Carol clenched her fists on her lap. "You don't see a single thing wrong with what you did to me, do you?"  

Duke shrugged. "Nope. Staying would have been the wrong thing to do."

Carol felt tears spring into her eyes but she fought them off. "Then I suggest we simply do our best to avoid one another. These people have taken me in since the death of my husband..."  

"Husband?" Duke growled with jealousy.

"Don't do that, Duke." Carol rolled her eyes. "You cannot begin to make me believe you've been a monk for the last twenty-six years."  

Duke grunted and leaned back against the wall. Carol sighed. "This is my home and I plan to stay in Windfall. I trust that you'll be leaving when you finish this business with Vincent. Before you leave, I need to let you know something. I have nothing but contempt for you, Duke. You took everything that I had all those years ago and you threw it all away and let me know exactly how much I didn't matter. We lost a child, Duke! A child. Just because it never got to see the light of day does not make it any less of a loss. I 

needed you and you left me. I waited in that town for you for nearly a year and you and I both know you never came back.“

Carol knew those tears were coming soon and she'd be damned to hell before she let him see her cry. "Now I am going to do what you taught me to do and I am going to walk away. Good riddance, Duke."  

She quickly scrambled for the ladder but with her vision blurry and her hands shaking, she misjudged the first step and slipped. Her footing lost, Carol fell and landed with a thud on the ground below.  

Though her head had smacked the floor roughly, her back was surely bruised and her eyes were seeing stars, it wasn't those things that kept her lying there with her eyes closed. It was Duke's panicked yell and the sound of him scrambling down the ladder that Carol feigning unconsciousness.  

Fear unlike any Duke had ever felt in his life gripped him as he slid down the ladder and rushed to Carol's side. She was lying still and unmoving upon the floor, her face pulled back in pain, her breathing shallow and her eyes closed.  

"Carol? Carol, honey, wake up." He dropped to his knees beside her and lifted her head up, cradling her against his lap. He ran his hand across her cheek and smoothed some strands of hair from her face.  

"Please, wake up," Duke pleaded, knowing it was the first time in his life he had ever begged for anything.  

Carol didn't open her eyes but she did moan and Duke took that as a good sign. She was unconscious from the bump to the head but he didn't think it would last too long. There was nothing he could do but wait. He figured that while he was waiting he might as well talk—it's not like she could hear him anyhow.  

Duke let his gaze drop to her soft, pale face and he pressed a tender kiss to her brow. "You stubborn woman. You were always so sure that you knew everything but you aren't nearly as smart as you think you are." He chuckled lightly. "I cared, Carol. God, did I care. I cared more than I should have; more than I ever meant to. When you lost that child, our child, it hurt bad. I never expected to love or care about anyone and when I realized I loved you, it scared me clear down to the soul. I was a coward and for the first time in my life I tucked tail and ran from something. I ran hard and I ran fast and I kept running. I've been running every day since then."  

Duke sniffed and swiped his shirt sleeve across his face. "I was a fool. I left behind the best damn thing to ever happen to a worthless man like me. There's times I'm so jealous of Marston, I can't stand to look at him. Times when I look at him and at Rose and at what they have built together and I realize that's what I gave up and I want to cry and I want to yell and I hate myself clear to the core. Damn, I've missed you, woman. I lived a bad life, a life that turns my stomach these days when I think back on it. A life that I probably should die for. There was only one good thing I ever had and that was you and I let you go. Damn but I'd like to get a do over on that one."  

Duke closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Confessions were tough on old, brittle hearts. He had spoken the truth. He regretted, not only what he'd done to her, but what he'd done to so many people his whole life. All the women he'd taken against their will, some of the innocent men he'd killed, Duke prayed that God could forgive him because he knew he wouldn't ever forgive himself.  

His eyes flew open when soft fingertips danced across his jaw. He looked down into Carol's light blue eyes and his heart ached in his chest. She offered a small smile. "I'm not the same woman I was back then, Duke. A lot of time has passed and a lot of things have happened."  

He laid a scarred, leathery hand on her cheek and somehow managed to smile. "And I'm not the same man I was. I don't ever want to be him again."  

"Are you going to run from me this time, you foolish old man?"  

"This old man don't run no more," he assured her.  

"Well are you too old to kiss me?" she whispered teasingly.  

Duke was rendered speechless when a tear rolled down his cheek and Carol swept it away with her thumb. He swallowed hard. "I'll never be too old for that."  

---

"Marston, come to bed. Duke and Jeremiah said we have at least a couple of days before those men show up," Rose repeated with exasperation as she patted the empty expanse of bed beside her.  

Still Marston simply continued to growl and pace the floor like an angry lion—caged and poked until it was barely containing its rage. Suddenly he stopped and raised his fist.  

Rose leapt from the bed and grabbed his arm. "Don't you dare punch another wall! Your knuckles are already bloody and swollen and we have a hole to patch in the den."  

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do, Rose," he snapped as he jerked his arm from her grasp.  

Rose put her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Don't you try that scary Marston act on me," she warned. "I'm not the least bit afraid of you and I won't have you being an ass to me just because you're afraid."  

"I'm not afraid," he countered. Rose raised her brow and he clenched his fists. "I'm pissed is what I am. Pete was right. If I had killed that bastard right the first time, he wouldn't be heading this way now."  

"Yes, and if a frog had wings it wouldn't bump its backside on the ground when it hopped," Rose teased with a comforting smile.  

Much of the tension melted from Marston's posture. "The grasshopper would tell you that's a lie."  

Rose stood on her toes and draped her arms around his neck. "We will get through this just as we've gotten through everything else life has thrown at us. Duke and Jeremiah are here. Pete is here. We have nothing to worry. Us women have the best armed guards that we could ask for and I'm not too shabby with a rifle either. You've taught me well."  

"You aren't going to be getting into a shootout with anybody," Marston countered sternly as an image of a bullet striking Rose filled his head, causing his stomach to turn.  

"Of course I won't," she agreed. "You men will have them taken care of long before they ever get close. Now come to bed with me. I'd hate to have to sleep alone."  

Marston sighed and let her lead him to the bed.  

---

"I'm scared, Pete," Kaitlyn whispered in the darkness of the bedroom as she lay curled up against Pete's chest.  

Pete kissed her hair. "I know you are. And I also know there's nothing I can say that's going to make you feel better so how about I just hold you?"  

"But it's our wedding night. Aren't you wanting to...?" Kaitlyn bit her lip and stopped speaking.  

Honestly the thought of making love right now, even with Pete, terrified her. Too many memories and fears were swirling fresh and raw in her mind. The past was swallowing her whole, especially now that she knew Vincent was coming for her.  

"No, I'm not wanting to," Pete replied gently as he pulled the cover tighter around her.  

Kaitlyn tried hard to mask her relief. "Why?"  

"What kind of husband would I be if I asked you for that right now? You're scared, you're vulnerable and you're trembling with fear in my arms. No matter how badly I might want you, I'm not going to take advantage."  

Kaitlyn sighed. "I'm not afraid of you."  

Pete smiled against her hair. "I know. But you're afraid of your memories and hearing Vincent's name tonight and knowing that he's coming has you terrified. I'm going to hold you in my arms and I'm going to keep you warm tonight. Then I'm going to kill Vincent and prove to you that you are safe from him once and for all. Once he's nothing but a distant, dwindling memory, I'll make love to you Kaitlyn and it will be amazing. I promise."  

"I love you, Pete," she whispered as she snuggled closer to him.  

"I love you too," he replied softly.  

Her breathing soon evened out and Pete knew that she was sleeping. He stared at the ceiling and thought about Vincent Sharp. If that good for nothing bastard thought for one second that he was going to get anywhere near Kaitlyn, then he had another thing coming. Pete may not be the strongest, fastest or smartest half the time but Kaitlyn was his wife and he would protect what was his.  

He would never allow his soft, gentle, caring woman who trusted him so completely be used or abused by any man ever again. That was something that simply could not be allowed.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

“Dear God, don’t shoot me! I came to warn you!” a skinny Mexican man declared when he found himself staring down the barrel of Marston’s forty-five revolver.

"Warn me of what?" Marston asked with a deceptively charming smile on his face.  Duke and Jeremiah were standing on opposite sides of the porch steps with their own revolvers aimed at the intruder and Pete had his rifle sights on him from the upstairs window. The women were safely tucked away in the cellar with Langley standing guard.  

Pete had to admit that there was something about that smile on Marston's face when he was toying someone that made a man want to tuck tail and run in a hurry.  

For two days the entire house had been on edge and simply waiting for something to happen. Then today, this man had shown up. Jeremiah had wanted to shoot him the moment they'd seen him in the distance but Marston had insisted that they first needed to see what he wanted.  

"Warn me of what, 

perro ?“ Marston repeated. “You better get to talking before I blow a hole in your head and watch your tiny Mexican brain leak out.”

"You have a problem with Mexicans, 

gringo ?“ the man demanded. Pete had to give the short man a little credit. He clearly had a lot of balls—too bad he was so low on brains.

"Nope," Marston shook his head. "I've got a problem with any man who rides up and claims he has something to warn me about when I know damn well there's a man and his gang wanting to come gunning for me."  

The Mexican nodded. "I was riding with Frank and Vincent, yes, but they have gone 

loco ! Vincent can barely hold himself in the saddle from that bullet you put in his lung years ago and Frank is half blind with rage and grief as he watches his brother dying.“

"They always were close," Jeremiah agreed with a wink.

"

Real close,“ Duke added with a slow drawl and a chuckle.

Marston laughed as he holstered his gun and put his thumbs through his belt loops. "So where are Frank and Vincent now?"  

"They are with four other men in town. They are drinking at the saloon and building up the courage to come face you. I snuck away on my own."  

"Uh-huh," Marston didn't seem convinced. "And how exactly did you figure out where I was?"

"The doctor in town told me. I asked him where Marston Jacobs lived and he asked if I meant Jacob Marston. I said yes because I remembered Jeremiah speaking of a man named Jacob."  

Marston threw his brother a glance which only served to make Jeremiah shrug as he swiped at his cold-reddened nose.  

"So they're in town right now?" Duke asked.  

"Yes, sir. They are waiting until dark and then they will make their move on you."  

"Why the hell should we believe anything he says if he was riding with them?" Pete called down from the window.  

Marston nodded as he took off his hat and wiped his brow. "Yeah, 

amigo , why should we believe you?“

"His name's Jose Rodriguez, Marston," Jeremiah spoke up. "I've ridden with him a few times and I think you can believe him. He ain't got the brains or the guts to lie to us."  

"Someone else is riding in," Pete warned.  

"What's going on, doc?" Marston demanded when he recognized Doctor Rankin.  

"I came to warn you about a man in town asking questions." Doctor Rankin was breathing hard has he got down from his horse. "But I see he's already here."  

"Yeah," Marston crossed his arms over his chest and stared down his nose at the doctor. "He found me."  

Doctor Rankin swallowed and his throat bobbed. "I'm sorry I told him where to find you. I didn't tell him at first but it would seem I turn a bit yellow when there is a gun pointed at my face."  

A smooth smile spread across his face and a cold glint entered his eyes as Marston turned back to Jose. Pete suddenly knew things weren't going to end well for the smaller man.  

"You put a gun to the good doctor's head?" Marston asked.  

Jose nodded, clearly not realizing he was merely digging a deeper hole. "

Si. I wanted to get here quickly so I could warn you. Where are your wife and children?“

Marston's fist shot out quicker than anyone could blink and Jose stumbled away, clutching at his nose as blood streamed between his fingers. "Don't you worry yourself about where they are," Marston growled. He turned to Doctor Rankin who was several shades whiter. "Are there strangers at the saloon?"  

"Yes." Doctor Rankin frowned. "There are six of them. They are talking about a man named Marston Jacobs. I thought your name was Jacob Marston? What is going on?"  

"The past is coming back to bite me in my ass." Marston plopped his hat back on his head. "Well, gentlemen, let's go kill some men."  

Pete nodded and slipped back in the window. He joined everyone outside moments later and saw that Marston was tying Jose up and Jose was yelling loudly in Spanish. Pete's Spanish was rusty but he didn't have to be fluent to know that Jose wasn't calling Marston a good person.  

"Jeremiah, take our friend here and go put him in the barn. We wouldn't want him running back to tell his friends we're coming."  

Marston tossed the hogtied man on the ground. Jeremiah grabbed his arm and dragged him through the mud and snow toward the barn.   

"We better go tell everyone else what's going on," Marston said and Pete followed him inside.  

"Who was that man?" Langley demanded, the moment the cellar door opened.  

"Jose Rodriguez," Marston replied. "I don't know him but Jeremiah does. He and the doc both say that Vincent and his men are at the saloon in town. Jose said they are planning to come here after dark. Duke, Jeremiah, Pete and I are fixing to head to town and save them the trip."  

"You better take care of yourself," Rose warned, biting her lip to ward off her tears.  

Marston took her in his arms and smoothed her curls from her face. "I always do, love. I'll be back by suppertime."  

"We're having ham," Rose said, forcing a sad smile.  

Marston's face tightened as he kissed her forehead. "Then I'll be home even sooner."  

"Pa?" Lucy's voice filled the cellar and Marston felt a tug on his shirtsleeve.  

He crouched down and looked at his daughter. "What is it, nugget?"  

She smiled and kissed his nose. "Bring me back some candy."  

Marston tousled her curls. "Sure thing." 	

Langley stepped forward as Marston stood straight. "Pa, I want to come with you."  

"I need you here, Langley," Marston countered. "There might be more going on than we know and I need you here to protect the women."  

"No you don't." Langley kicked the ground angrily. "You just don't want me coming along."  

Marston rubbed at the back of his neck. "You're right. Call me crazy but I don't want my son going into a situation that might be.....scary," he finished, sparing a quick glance at Lucy.

"I'm a man now," Langley stated, puffing out his chest.  

Marston nodded. "Yes, but you are still my son and you being safe means more to me than you being happy with me about it."  

"Langley, just do as he says," Rose spoke up and Langley nodded and took a step back. He very rarely ever argued with his mama. "Lucy, stay here. I'm going to go talk to your pa." Rose took Marston by the hand and led him from the cellar.  

"Where's Duke?" Carol asked Pete as she glanced out the cellar door.  

Pete shrugged. "I reckon he stayed outside." Carol's eyes narrowed and she was gone.

"I love you, Pete," Kaitlyn said softly.  

Pete went to her and gathered her into his arms, holding her close and breathing in the sweet scent of her hair. "I love you too, Kaitlyn."  

He saw Lucy frowning as she watched them and he pulled away and quickly wiped the tears from Kaitlyn's face. "Is there anything you want me to bring you from town?"  

"My husband," Kaitlyn replied.  

Pete offered a comforting smile and kissed her brow. "If I see him, I'll be sure to bring him back with me." The smile he'd been hoping to see curved her lips.  

"Pete, you 

are her husband!“ Lucy reminded him with a giggle.

Pete frowned. "I am? How did that happen? The woman is far too beautiful and smart to marry a man like me."  

"That's what I thought too but I guess she was desperate," Langley cut in with a grin. "There aren't too many young, unmarried men to pick from here in Windfall."  

Kaitlyn stuck her tongue out at her brother and Pete was chuckling when she pressed kiss to his jaw and laid her lips against his ear. "You better come back to me, Pete," she whispered. "I need you here with me."  

Pete's heart tightened in his chest. He held her tightly, memorizing every detail of the way she felt against him. "I'm coming back to you. I promise you that," he replied, hoping like hell those words wouldn't turn out to be petty lies.

"It's time to go," Marston's gruff voice ordered as he stepped back to the cellar. Rose's cheeks were wet with tears that she had shed and Marston's eyes were red-rimmed. Pete wasn't going to say a word to the big man though. Not when he was sure his eyes looked the same.  

"I'll stay here with the ladies and Langley," Doctor Rankin said as he stepped into the cellar.  

Marston nodded and began handing out the rifles in his hands. He gave one to the doc, Rose and Kaitlyn, tipping his head toward the revolver in Langley's waistband.  

"What are the guns for, pa?" Lucy inquired, her tiny brow wrinkling.  

"Rats," Marston winked. "You all are gonna stay down here and watch for 'em and then tell pa how many you managed to get."  

"Okay!" Lucy was obviously excited as she hopped up on a crate and held her doll tight.  

Without another word, Marston left the cellar. Pete followed suit, holding on to Kaitlyn's hand until they could no longer stretch before his fingers slipped free and his hand fell to his side.  

When they walked to the front door they found Carol standing in front of it with her arms crossed over her chest and her foot tapping loudly on the hardwood floor.  

"It's time to go to the cellar," Pete told her gently.  

Her blue eyes glared at him. "I'll go when I'm good and ready!"  

"Yes ma'am," Pete quickly conceded and left the house in a rush. He wasn't in any mood to have his head knocked off by an angry woman.  

"Where's Jeremiah?" Marston asked Duke as the older man led four saddled horses from the barn.  

Duke shrugged. "He's in there with our guest."  

A loud yell of pain filled the air followed by angry Spanish curses. Jeremiah stepped outside with a smile as he wiped his knife on his pants.  

"What the hell did you do?" Duke demanded.  

"I just gave him a bit of a limp," Jeremiah insisted, his smile growing. "Just in case he manages to get loose somehow, he won't be able to run away real fast."  

"I'm going to bleed to death, 

gringo !“ Jose cried out from inside.

"Not if you stay calm," Jeremiah assured him. "You gotta keep that heart beating real slow."  

Marston shook his head and slid onto Buck's back. "Let's go," he ordered.  

"Here we go again!" Jeremiah announced with excitement. "The three amigos, plus one, riding off to blow some holes and give some men lead poisoning."  

Duke chuckled as he climbed up on his horse and settled himself in his saddle with the golden brass stirrups. Duke had assured Marston he was getting his saddle back and he'd done so with a quick punch to the jaw which had sent Marston sprawling on his backside. "There's one difference," Duke said. "This time we have the law on our side."  

Jeremiah slumped a little. "That takes the fun right out of it."  

Pete found himself chuckling. Was he nervous? Hell yeah. Did any of these men act nervous. Hell no. That meant Pete wasn't going to act nervous either.  

"There's not a single damn thing that's changed about you, is there Duke?" Carol's angry voice was suddenly yelling from the porch behind them.  

The four men turned to her. She was standing on the porch with her blue shawl wrapped tight around her shoulders and rage flashing in her light blue eyes. Her cheeks were flushed with cold and her hair was whipping in the breeze.  

Duke rubbed the back of his neck and eyed her sheepishly. "What the hell do you mean?" he demanded, though he didn't sound the least bit angry.  

Carol shook her head. "You show up here, spout poetic words that have me falling at your feet...."  

"Actually, you fell of a ladder before I spouted any words," Duke reminded her.  This merely had her eyes narrowing to slits and Duke swallowed hard.

"As I was saying! You had your way with me 

in the barn of all places and everything seemed to be going just fine. Until now. Now I see that you’re the same as you were then.“

"Well what the hell has changed now?" Duke demanded. Pete saw that his ears were red but whether it was the mention of shared romantic encounters or the extreme Dakota cold, Pete couldn't say.  

Carol threw up her hand. "You're doing it again! You're riding off and leaving me behind."  

Duke leaned forward in the saddle. "Well I sure as hell ain't bringing you along."  

Hurt filled her eyes. "You could have at least said goodbye."  

"What the devil for?" Duke grumbled. "I'm coming back, you crazy woman," he added, his tone softening.  

"You had better come back," she warned, a smile softening her features. "And you know, it never hurts to bring a lady back a present when you've made an ass of yourself."  

"You got it, old girl," Duke agreed tenderly. "Now go lock yourself up tight with everyone else."  

It wasn't until Carol had stepped inside and locked the door behind her, that Duke turned and realized Jeremiah and Marston were staring at him as if he'd grown a second head.  

"What the hell was that?" Marston demanded. "I knew you'd been bedding one another but I sure as hell didn't expect to hear you talk like that to her. Hell, Duke, you sound like a man in love."  

"So what if I am?" Duke asked sharply. "What business is that of yours?"

"This entire family has lost their damned minds!" Jeremiah snapped as he started down the road. "Catching the crazy, letting lawmen in. Hell, I'm the only damn one left that's got half a working brain!"  

"God help humanity," Marston muttered. "Now come on, let's get to town, kill these men, get some candy for Lucy, a present for Carol and get home in time to have Rose's ham fresh from the oven."

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

The sun was halfway across the sky when the four men rode into town. Their hats were pulled low, their holsters loose and their coats thrown back. The sun glinted off the metal in their guns and stirrups. The breath of the men and the horses alike, rose and swirled in the frigid January air.

The streets were surprisingly empty. Even the birds and the horses had fallen silent. Wandering townsfolks saw the four men riding in and they quickly scurried inside for cover.  

The men's hard faces and sharp eyes contrasted with their relaxed posture atop their horses. Hooves sunk deep in the mud with every step they took and the horses snorted and shook their heads as if knowing something very important was about to take place here in the quiet town of Windfall.  

"I'm gonna have to get a pad for my damn saddle," Jeremiah's voice broke the quiet. "My backside feels like I've been riding on a cactus."  

"Since I'm fixing to get shot by someone else, I'll not say the first thing that popped into my head and get myself shot by you too," Marston chuckled.  

Pete snorted with laughter despite his nervousness. Pete was full of anger and determination. Anger over what happened to Kaitlyn and determination to see that Vincent never laid another hand on his wife and died for what he'd already done.  

The air was vibrating with tension when the four men hopped off their horses and hitched them at the saloon. "Hot damn!" Jeremiah rubbed his hands together. "I love the rush I get when I know I'm gonna kill somebody."  

Pete shook his head. "I'm beginning to think I married into a family of crazy asses."

"Welcome to the asylum," Marston replied. "I need to warn you of some things before this goes down."

"Okay," Pete agreed.  

"It's every man for himself, Pete. Don't throw yourself in harm's way expecting one of us to come to your rescue and get ourselves killed. We don't die for one another."  

"I don't need anyone protecting me, Marston," Pete growled with irritation.  

Marston nodded. "Good. Neither does Duke and Jeremiah. Neither do I. Remember that. No playing hero. I don't care if you are a damn lawman."  

"You got it," Pete agreed with a tip of his hat. "You don't take any bullets for me and I won't take any for you."  

"And then we'll all go home, eat some ham and live happily ever after," Duke chimed in.  

"My home is not your home," Marston countered sternly.  

Duke shifted his feet. "I was actually hoping to speak to you about that. After we're done killing these bastards of course."  

Marston ran his hand over his face and grumbled. "Is it just me or does everybody have something they want to talk to me about these days?"  

Jeremiah grinned and clapped him on the shoulder. "I don't ever want to talk to you about things, little brother." He chuckled. "Seems strange to call you little brother when you're a foot taller and a hundred pounds heavier than I am. You are a big bastard, you know that?"  

Marston threw his brother an exasperated glance, shook his head in defeat and laid his hand over his revolver. "Let's go say hello to our friends."  

Pete squared his shoulders and followed Marston into the saloon. Duke was behind him and Jeremiah brought up the rear. The saloon was empty other than the six dirty men currently occupying the bar. The bartender glanced up from the glass he was wiping and Marston dismissed him with a nod. He gratefully smiled and made a quick exit.  

One of the seated men turned to face them and, while Pete had never met the man, he assumed from his sickly appearance, it was Vincent. "Well hell, boys," Vincent rasped. He clutched the bar for support as his breath wheezed in and out heavily. "We're seeing us a ghost."  

Marston grinned. "Hello there, Vincent. You're looking well these days."  

"Don't speak to him that way, Marston! You did this to my brother for nothing. You had no right to shoot him that day. He didn't do a damn thing!"  Pete knew this man must be Frank and that Jose had been telling the truth when he said the man was 

loco.

"Other than force a little girl to lay with him?" Marston drawled.  

Vincent's face reddened with rage. "She belongs to me!" he shouted and then he broke down in a fit of coughing, gasping for air and nearly falling from his stool.

Frank grabbed his brother's arm to support him. "That girl is mine," Vincent gasped hoarsely when the coughing subsided. "You took her and I'm gonna take her back right after I kill you for what you've done to me."  

"That's where you're wrong," Pete assured him, stepping forward. "That 

girl you’re talking about is now a grown woman and she is my woman. You aren’t going to be laying a hand on her.“

"And just who the hell are you?" Frank sneered. "I know Duke and Jeremiah but you're a new face—and what a hell of a face it is!" Frank whistled. "Son, just who the hell did you piss off?"  

"Somebody a hell of a lot tougher than you," Pete stated coldly. He'd never been a tough talker but knowing he was defending Kaitlyn made him feel a lot braver than he was.  

"We're gonna finish this...today," Vincent growled.  

"Yes we are," Marston agreed. "Let's take this outside, boys. I'd hate to see some of these bottles busted and good whiskey wasted."  

Pete watched Marston, Duke and Jeremiah turn their backs on the men and leave the saloon and he was quick to follow suit, though he expected to feel a bullet slam into his back at any moment.  

The two groups of men faced off on the street. Marston, Duke, Jeremiah and Pete stood shoulder to shoulder and faced Frank, Vincent and their men standing ten yards away.  

"We can't lose," Marston reminded the men beside him with a whisper.  

"So, 

scarface ,“ Vincent sneered. “You’ve had Kaitlyn, have you? Is she still as good.. as I.. remember?”

Pete saw red. He strode forward, his boots slipped and slid in the mud and his breath came in angry bursts. Finally he stopped, seven feet from Vincent. He took a wide-legged stance.  

His eyes honed in on Vincent alone, ignoring the men around him. Pete's lips curved in a slow, icy smile and he saw Vincent's eyes shift. Pete was currently doing his best Marston impression but he had something Marston didn't have. A horrendous, scar that disfigured one entire side of his face.  

"You still have good memories of what my wife was like in bed, do you?" Pete asked.  

Vincent chuckled. "She was... a hellcat. She damn near... bit my tongue.. off when.. I stuck.. it.. in her pretty mouth."  

Pete nodded. "I'm glad you have your memories, Vincent. You can take them to hell with you."  

Pete drew his revolver and fired a shot directly into Vincent's pale, sneering face. The street fell silent as the echo of revolver fire resounded off the nearby buildings.  

Vincent's body fell backward into the mud, his wheezing breaths no longer filling the air. He glanced Frank's way when he heard the unmistakable sound metal scraping leather. "You killed my brother!" Frank yelled.  

Pete ran as guns were pulled all around him. Gunshots filed the air as he slipped and slid his way behind a watering trough and bullets thumped against the wood.  

Pete glanced over the scarred wood to see a body lying next to Vincent's in the street. Everyone else had run for cover. Pete could see Duke inside the mercantile. The man had busted out the window and was firing shots at Frank who was taking cover behind a post at the saloon.  

Pete scrambled to his feet when he saw two of the men who had been riding with Frank and Vincent run into the livery. He stayed low and ran around the back of the building. Pete had no idea where Marston or Jeremiah were but he wasn't going to let these two men get away.  

As long as any of the bastards were still breathing, Kaitlyn would never be completely safe.  

"I hope you know that you royally messed this up," Jeremiah voice came from behind him. Pete put his back against the rough boards and saw Jeremiah slipping out the back of the saloon toward him.  

The two men stood shoulder to shoulder and reloaded their weapons. "What are you talking about?" Pete demanded.  

"We have a system, Duke, Marston and I. A system in which we pull our guns, fire off a few shots, kill everyone, put our guns away and go about our day. Thanks to you, everyone is scattered and we stand a good chance of getting bullets in our back."  

"Why don't you jump my ass after we kill the two men in the livery?"  

Jeremiah grinned. Pete went to the small window and glanced inside, ducking quickly when he saw the man leaning against the wall just on the other side.  

"There's one right there," Pete whispered, pointing to the boards in front of Jeremiah.  

Jeremiah chuckled. "Not for long."  

Gunshots were still ringing out on the street, making it clear that Duke or Marston or both were still alive and fighting. Pete watched as Jeremiah slid his sawed off, double barrel, ten gauge shotgun from his back and readied both barrels.  

Pete nodded Jeremiah's way when he glanced back through the window and saw the man was still standing there watching the door. Jeremiah smiled and pulled both triggers.  

The blast deafened Pete and blasted a hole cleanly through the wood. Splinters went flying as the wall disappeared and the man inside slumped to the floor with much of torso missing.  

"Well don't just stand there, sheriff! Get around and front and drop that other man before he gets away," Jeremiah ordered before blowing on the smoking barrels of his gun.  

Pete nodded and slipped around the front of the livery, staying slow and cursing the bullets that thumped the wood and nearly hit him. He quickly darted into the door and cried out when a bullet tore through his arm.  

His eyes narrowed, Pete saw a flash of movement behind a stack of lumber toward the back. Pete took cover behind a bale of hay and glanced at his arm. The wound was only a graze but it burned like the devil.  

"Are you hurt, scarface?" the man called out. "Did I get ya good?"  

Pete feigned weakness. "Yeah..." he called out hoarsely. "Yeah, you got me good." 	

He heard boots on the floor and knew the man was coming to finish him off. Pete closed his eyes, silently counted to three and then raised up with his rifle and fired a shot.  

Blood poured from the hole in the man's chest as he fell to his knees. He frowned up at Pete, blood dripping from his mouth, before falling face first on the dusty floor.  

Pete sighed. He hated killing people. A sound behind him had Pete turning and one of the other unaccounted men stood there. A gun was trained on Pete.  

Pete aimed his rifle at the man's chest and the two remained in a stand-off. "This wasn't supposed to be about some girl," the man muttered, licking his sweat-slicked lip. "This was supposed to be about paying Marston back for what he did to Vincent. Vincent was a good man. He taught me to read, you know, and he taught me how to draw a gun and how to look out for myself. He was the closest thing to a pa I had and you just killed him out on that street. You're a coward who killed a dying man."  

"I'd kill Vincent again," Pete assured him. "He raped my wife when she was only an eleven year old girl. That man was a monster."  

"He paid for her services," the man countered.  

Pete was about to pull the trigger on the rifle in his hands when Marston's big frame appeared in the door behind the other man and blocked out the light. The man began to turn but Marston swung the heavy board in his hands and it caught the man in the side of the head.  

His head twisted around with a sickening crack of bone. The man instantly crumpled to the floor with blood pouring from his ears, nose and mouth.  

Marston tossed the board away and chuckled. "Reckon we oughta pay him for his services?"  

Pete couldn't help but laugh. "You whacked him with lumber."  

Marston shrugged. "My revolver was empty and I was coming in here to reload it. I saw you having a bit of trouble so I grabbed the closest thing."  

Pete smiled. They had done it. There could only be one man left from Vincent's side and with all four of them still alive and kicking, Frank wouldn't stand a chance.  

"I thought this would be harder than it was," Pete announced.  

"You should have had more faith in us," Marston winked. "That was quite the tough guy move you pulled on Vincent in the street."  

Pete sighed. "I didn't put much thought into it."  

"Regrets?" Marston asked.  

Pete nodded. "I should have made him suffer more."  

Marston laughed and patted Pete on the back. "You might just be okay, lawman."  

"I'm hit!" Duke's voice suddenly yelled from outside. "Frank is still alive. He ran but I'm hit."

Marston and Pete ran from the livery and stood on the boardwalk. Jeremiah was already across the street and rushing into the mercantile to tend to Duke.  

"You killed my brother."  

Pete turned slowly and saw Frank coming around the side of the livery with his gun drawn. Pete knew that with his arm injured, he wouldn't be able to draw fast enough to take Frank down before he pulled the trigger.  

It dawned on Pete then that he was going to die. He was never going to see his wife again. He would never feel her kiss or her touch. He would never know what it would have been like to make love with her and have her slender body move against his. Pete would never be the pa he'd dreamt of being. He and Kaitlyn would never have a cabin full of beautiful girls and awkward boys.  

He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. Death was okay. He had saved Kaitlyn. He had killed the man who had hurt her most and Pete knew he had made a difference in her life during the time he'd been there. And Pete also knew that Kaitlyn would always know how much he had loved her. There would be no doubts in her mind about that.  

"I'm gonna kill you now," Frank stated as tears streamed down his dirty face. The gun blast that followed deafened Pete to every other sound.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

Pete squeezed his eyes closed tight and waited for the pain. But it never came. Instead he heard a grunt, the sickening sound of a bullet striking flesh and a body crashing to the boardwalk.  

He opened his eyes to see Marston lying at his feet with a hole in the right side of his chest. Frank was preparing to fire another shot at Pete but Pete went for his revolver and fired a shot just as Marston pulled his derringer and fired one as well.  

Frank slumped to the boardwalk with two holes. One his chest, the other in his head. Pete dropped to his knees beside Marston as the man collapsed onto his back.  

"Dammit, Marston, what the hell were you thinking?" Pete demanded.  

The lines on Marston's face grew deeper with his grimace. "I was thinking that you were about to be killed."  

"What? And you just thought it would be better if you got killed instead?" Pete roared, trying to pull Marston's coat away to examine his wound by finding his hand swatted away.  

Marston growled. "I don't plan on dying anytime soon."  

"I thought there was no playing hero," Pete reminded him. "No taking bullets for each other? What the hell were you thinking?"  

"I was thinking that Kaitlyn is rather fond of you," Marston grumbled. "Now help me up."  

"Yeah, well there's a few people that are fond of you too." Pete put Marston's big arm around his shoulders and helped the big man to his feet. "Jeremiah's right," he grunted. "You are one big bastard."

Marston grabbed the livery wall to steady himself once he was standing and he laid his hand over his blood covered chest. "I think my goddamned rib is broke."  

"Well, be glad your rib caught the bullet or else you wouldn't be alive to complain about it."  

Marston chuckled but then drew in a sharp breath between his clenched teeth and grimaced. "Duke? Duke was hit.. is he okay?"  

Pete stood in shock when Marston took off across the street at a pace pretty damn close to a run. How the man managed to run when he had a bullet lodged in his rib was a mystery to Pete.  

Pete made his way across the street as well as townsfolk began to come out of their hiding places and survey the damage. Broken windows, holes in walls and leaking water troughs were among some of the damage done.  

"I'm fine!" Duke's voice snapped from inside the mercantile. "That damn bastard just shot me in the damn shooting shoulder is all."  

Pete stepped into the mercantile to find Jeremiah helping Duke tie his arm in place with a tablecloth that had been for sale. "You paying for that?" Pete asked.  

Duke shook his head. "Nope. I'm not paying for this either," he added as he held up the tiny angel figurine in his hand.  

Pete frowned. "Carol's present?"

"Why the hell would she want that?" Jeremiah asked.  

Duke shrugged. "She'll like it."  

The four men started toward the door and Marston turned at the last minute and grabbed a handful of cinnamon candy. He stuck it deep in his pocket as if daring Pete to say anything. Given the fact that Marston had just saved his life, Pete knew there was no way he could say anything to the man for stealing some candy for Lucy.

"What was all that about?" Saloon owner, Edmund Rayne demanded as he approached Pete on the street.  

"It's just some old business that wasn't settled," Marston replied. "It's settled now." Duke, Jeremiah and Marston started toward their horses. "You coming?" Marston asked Pete.

Pete shook his head. "I need to stay here in town and help with the bodies and the clean-up. I am the law around here after all."  

"Damn lawman in the family..." Jeremiah grumbled. "It's almost enough to make me wish I could be disowned."  

"I could do that for you," Marston replied dryly.  

"Hey, you know what?" Jeremiah exclaimed brightly. "I'm the only one that didn't get shot today! Y'all are getting to slow. I don't have a mark on me." 	

Marston growled, pulled his knife and sliced it cleanly through Jeremiah's sleeve and the skin of his upper arm. Jeremiah let out a hiss of pain and grabbed at his bleeding arm. "What the hell, Marston?!"  

Marston grinned. "I didn't want you to feel left out." 	

Pete shook his head as he watched the three of them mount up. It was clear that Marston and Duke were having trouble. Marston was bleeding very heavily and Duke had no use of his right arm but neither man asked for help.  

Pete decided that outlaw pride was a pretty serious thing.  

"Is it safe to let my children come out?" a woman asked as she poked her head from a window in the hotel.  

"The bad men are gone," Pete assured her gently. "Give me a bit of time to clear the bodies and it'll be fit for your children to come out."  

Pete smiled reassuringly at the woman and then got to work putting his town back together.  

---

"Mama, I gotta pee!" Lucy repeated for what had to be the thirtieth time.  

"You'll have to wait until your pa gets back," Rose replied with a touch more irritation than she'd shown on the twenty-eight and twenty-ninth times.  

"But mama, I got to go now!" she insisted, bouncing up and down.  

Langley pushed himself away from the wall. "I'll take her, mama."  

"Your pa wanted all of us to stay in here," Rose argued.  

Langley sighed. "It's been hours and she has to go. I have my gun. I'll just take her straight there and bring her straight back."  

Rose nodded with defeat. "Fine, but take this," she insisted, handing him her rifle.  

"Are there rats in the outhouse too?" Lucy asked.  

Rose nodded. "There might be. You all keep an eye out for them."  

"Okay mama," Lucy replied, bouncing out of the cellar when Langley opened the door.  

"Why do we have to stay in the cellar so long?" Lucy asked her brother as he led her through the house.	

"Because pa wants us to."  

Langley led Lucy outside and he waited near the porch while she went to the outhouse. Langley stared up at the clear blue sky and marveled at the peace of the day. No one would know that half his family could die today by looking up at that sky.  

Langley looked at his sister running toward the outhouse and then he noticed the bloody footprints in the snow in that direction. Langley yelled out a warning but it was too late.  

A Mexican man with torn ropes around his wrists and blood covering his left pants leg came around the building and grabbed Lucy. She tried to let out a scream but the man clamped his hand over her mouth.  

"Let her go!" Langely exclaimed.  

The man shook her head. "Not until I am safely away from here. Your pa and those other men will kill me when they return and if they lose the fight then Vincent and Frank will kill me. I have to leave."  

"You're hurt bad," Langley noted when he saw the sheen of sweat covering the man's skin despite the cold.  "Why don't you just put her down and we'll get the doc inside to tend to you?" 	

"No!" the man exclaimed as Lucy began to fight against him. The man held her tighter and Langley saw pain fill Lucy's eyes.  

"Don't hurt my sister!" Langley warned. He was afraid to take a shot with the gun in his hand. What if he missed and shot his sister? He would never forgive himself.  

"Give me a horse and a weapon and I will let her go once I'm safely away."  

"No, I won't let you take her anywhere," Langley argued with a quick shake of his head.  

The Mexican wrapped one arm around her neck and smiled. "Then I'll break her neck 

amigo .“

Lucy's eyes filled with anger and Langley saw a spark in them that reminded him of pa. She kicked her foot back and caught the man right between his legs. He screamed in pain and released his hold on her. Langley was firing his shot the instant she was safely on the ground.  

The man fell dead to the ground and Lucy ran into Langley's arms. "What's going on?" Rose exclaimed as she ran from the house with Kaitlyn, Carol and Doctor Rankin behind her.  

Her eyes went to the dead man and then back to her children. "He was hiding behind the outhouse, mama," Langley informed her.  

"I kicked him, mama," Lucy added. "And Langley shot him."  

"He's dead," the doctor assured them after checking the body for a pulse.  

"Thank God you're both okay," Rose breathed out in relief, hugging both her women close.

Kaitlyn wrapped her arms tight around herself. "Let's get back inside."  

"Wait Kaitlyn. Get your weapons ready." Langley warned, squinting into the distance and handing Lucy to Rose. "There's horses coming."

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

“It’s Marston!” Rose exclaimed, as she sat Lucy on her feet and ran toward the road.

Kaitlyn watched her pa leap from his horse and quickly close the distance separating him from his wife. He held his hands out to stop her from leaping into his arms.  

"I'm a bit of a mess," he warned, his voice weak and laced with pain. That's when Kaitlyn noticed the blood covering him. Rose shoved Marston's hands away and wrapped her arms around him.  

Kaitlyn saw Duke and Jeremiah but Pete wasn't there. Fear gripped her heart. "Pa?" she whispered. "Where's Pete?"  

"He's fine, I promise. He got nicked in the arm but it wasn't anything serious. He wanted to stay behind to set the town right after everything that went down."  

"Duke, are you okay?" Carol asked as she made her way through the snow. Duke got down from his horse and wrapped her in a one armed hug. "That bastard got my shoulder is all. I'll be just fine once it heals. I got you something," he added, reaching in his pocket.  

He handed her the small angel figurine he'd stolen from the mercantile. Carol's blue eyes filled with tears as she stared at the tiny piece of porcelain. Her eyes lifted to Duke's face with shock. "You remembered?"  

Duke nodded and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "You'd be surprised by what I remember."

Kaitlyn was struck by the softness in her uncle's voice because it was so different from anything she'd ever heard in it before.  

"What the hell happened to him and how'd he get loose?" Jeremiah demanded when he pointed toward Jose's dead body.  

Rose moved away from Marston long enough to point toward Lucy and Langley. "Langley brought Lucy out to use the outhouse and that man had gotten loose. He attacked Lucy but Langley protected her."  

"Did you shoot him?" Marston asked Langley, noticing the paleness of the boy's face. Langley nodded. "You saved your sister. I'm proud of you."  

Marston stalked into the barn and when he returned several moments later, his face was a mask of rage. He stormed to Jeremiah and let his fist fly, busting his brother in the jaw.  

"What was that for?" Jeremiah grumbled, spitting blood.  

"You put our friend here next to a pitchfork and he cut his way free. You almost got my daughter killed and you made my boy have to pull the trigger on a man."  

"Yeah, but she was only 

almost killed. She’s fine!“ Jeremiah insisted. “You didn’t have to punch me.”

"I did have to punch you," Marston countered. "And if she hadn't been fine, I'd have been killing you."  

"I'm sorry," Jeremiah muttered with true regret. "I didn't realize there was anything close enough to him that he could cut his way free."  

"Pa?" Lucy's fearful voice whispered. "Pa, you're bleeding."  

Marston grimaced with pain as he crouched down. "I'm fine, nugget. Did that man hurt you?"  

"His hand stunk when he put it on my face but he didn't hurt me. I kicked him hard right between the legs just like you taught me to."  

"That's my girl," Marston winked.  

She put her chubby hand on his jaw. "Did you bring me candy?"  

"Lucy!" Rose scolded but Marston simply grinned and reached in his pocket.  

"Of course I did," he said as he placed on of the sugary sticks in her hand.  

"Pa, you don't look very good," Kaitlyn warned as she took in the pallor of his skin and the sweat on his face. Blood was dripping on the snow beneath him and he seemed to be having trouble drawing a decent breath.  

"I'm not feeling very good," he admitted. "I think I might be in need of you and the doc's attention."  

Without warning, Marston fell backward into the snow. Rose cried out and dropped to her knees beside him. "Marston, you're gonna be fine," she promised.  

Doctor Rankin pull back Marston's coat to reveal the wound low on the right side of his chest. Marston smiled up at Rose. "I came home just like I promised I would."  

Rose cried out his name when his eyes slid closed. Doctor Rankin pulled back his eyelids and turned his attention to a panicked Rose. "I think he'll be okay. He's just lost a lot of blood and we need to get that bullet out and close the wound."  

Doctor Rankin stood up. "Langley, Jeremiah, help me get him inside. Kaitlyn, get some water heated and go get your bag of supplies."  

Kaitlyn nodded and scurried away, her mind racing. Her pa may very well be dying and her husband was still in town. Was he really okay or had her pa merely been telling her what she wanted to hear? Were all those other men truly dead?  

There were so many unanswered questions but none of them could be answered until she helped Doctor Rankin make her pa okay.  

---

"He's gonna be just fine, mama," Kaitlyn said as she wiped her freshly washed hands on her apron and stepped into the hallway.  

Rose stood up off the floor and wiped her pale face with her trembling hand. "Kaitlyn, are you sure?"  

Kaitlyn nodded. "I'm sure. His rib stopped the bullet. He's going to be down for a while and he'll have to take it easy. I'm sure he'll be sore and grouchy as a bear but he'll be okay."  

Rose's body sagged with relief. "I don't care if he's grouchy. I'll gladly deal with his grouchiness if it means he's alive."  

"Where's Lucy?" Kaitlyn asked.  

Rose pointed down the hall. "In the den playing cards with Langley and Jeremiah."  

Kaitlyn bit the inside of her lip. "Has Pete come back yet?"  

"No, not yet sweetheart. Duke said he's fine and Duke wouldn't lie to make us feel better. I need to be getting to your pa now."  

Rose walked around Kaitlyn and went into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. She slowly made her way to the bed where Marston was laying. He had a piece of white linen tied around his middle and it contrasted sharply with his tanned skin. He appeared sound asleep so she gently smoothed a lock of brown hair from his brow and kissed his temple.  

"You scared me, outlaw," she whispered, her hands trembling as all her fear came rushing back. Rose would not have lived through losing him a second time.

"Sorry, ma'am," Marston's voice was weak and tired but it was music to Rose's ears just the same. "I didn't mean to worry you."  

Rose curled up on her side and propped herself on her elbow. "Marston, I thought you were going to die."  

He smiled. "I did too there for a minute."  

Rose's fingers traced his jaw. "How did you get shot?"  

"Somebody pulled the trigger on a gun and I just happened to be at the other end of the barrel." Marston wasn't about to tell her that he had taken that bullet to save Pete. All that confession would lead to was hugs and thank-you's and talk about him being a good person. It would be sure to have his head pounding and his stomach churning.  

"Marston, I'm serious," Rose scolded.  

"I am too," he replied, kissing her nose. "Don't look so irritated. Everything is okay now. Vincent is dead and so are all the men that were riding with him."  

Rose relaxed against him and laid her head against his shoulder. "Was it bad?"  

"It wasn't good." Marston stared up at the ceiling. "You should have seen Pete though. He marched right up to Vincent and blew his head clean off. There was no fear, no hesitation—he did it like a man who's been killing his whole life."  

Rose rolled her eyes at the pride in Marston's voice. "I hate violence and I hate the thought of murder but I'm glad that Pete was the one who got Vincent. I'm sure it was something he needed to do. Just like with you and Gilliam."  

"I'm sorry that my past keeps coming back to haunt our family," Marston whispered. He kissed her red curls. "You'd probably be better off if you'd never met me."  

"Nonsense." Rose kissed his jaw. "You are the single best thing that has ever happened to me outside of Langston taking me away from Gilliam. I love you, Marston, and our family loves you. We need you. We all have a past here and that's one of the things I love the most about our rag tag little group."  

Marston grinned. "Is that right?"  

"Yes. Did you know that Duke and Carol knew each other years ago and were together for a while?"  

"Yeah and to be honest with you, it shocks the shit right out of me. Duke was the one who always preached about never letting anyone close—never caring."  

"Maybe that was because his heart was hurting," she offered.  

Marston shrugged one shoulder and yawned loudly. "You're tired. Get some sleep and I'll stay right here with you."  

"I don't need you petting all over me, Rose," Marston grumbled.  

Rose laughed lightly. "I'll pet all over you if I want to. And you just wait until the laudanum wears off, Marston. You'll realize then how much you need me."  

Marston simply grumbled some more before closing his eyes and going to sleep.  

---

Kaitlyn met Doctor Rankin a short time later as he stepped out of Duke's room. "How is he?" she asked.  

"Sleeping right now. He'll be hurting might back when he wakes up though. That bullet was lodged in his shoulder blade and it's going to ache forever I'm afraid."  

"You look tired, doc, and I know I am. Let's go to the kitchen and I'll make some fresh coffee."  

"That sounds like heaven, Kaitlyn. I am worried about Blanche though. I hope she's okay in town," Doctor Rankin said, fiddling with his pocket watch.  

"I'm sure she's fine," Kaitlyn assured him, though she knew that it probably wouldn't do any good. He probably felt much the same as she did. It didn't matter how many times you heard that the person you loved was okay, you needed to see them and feel them in order to truly believe it.

Kaitlyn led Doctor Rankin to the kitchen and realized Carol had already made a fresh pot of coffee. She poured both the doctor and herself a cup and they sat together in silence drinking the steaming liquid.  

"This is ridiculous!" Kaitlyn exclaimed after several long, tense minutes of silent worrying. "Come on, Doctor. You and I are going back to town."  

"Shouldn't you check with your pa first?" Doctor Rankin asked.  

Kaitlyn shook her head as she stood. "I am a grown, married woman and a sheriff's wife no less! I need to see my husband to know that he is well just the same as I'm sure you need to see Blanche."  

Kaitlyn grabbed her coat off the hook and headed into the den with Doctor Rankin following along behind her. "The doctor and I are going back to town. I should be home tonight but if I'm not, don't worry. That will just mean that Pete and I decided to stay at the hotel."  

"Okay," Langley shrugged. "Should I come with you?"  

Kaitlyn shook her head and secured her bonnet. "Doctor Rankin and I will be just fine."  

"Have fun, Kaitlyn. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Jeremiah laughed when his words made Kaitlyn blushed. He winked. "Which means you can pretty much do whatever the hell you want."  

Kaitlyn's face was bright red as she rushed from the house. Lucy stood from her place beside the fire. "I'm going to go say hi to pa," she said before running from the room with her brown curls swinging and Creed on her heels.  

"How you doing, kid?" Jeremiah asked Langley as he began dealing out another hand of five card stud.  

"I'm fine," Langley replied. "Why wouldn't I be?"  

"You killed somebody today."  

"Yeah I know but if I hadn't killed him then he would have killed Lucy," Langley replied, his gaze fixed on the cards in his hand.  

"I remember the first man I killed—it didn't really bother me much. I guess that piece of conscience is broken in me. It tore your pa up the first time he did though. He got over it quick but it still bothered him."  

"I'm fine, Uncle Jeremiah," Langley snapped. "I'm good enough to be whooping your ass at poker, aren't I?"  

"That's because I'm injured," Jeremiah grumbled, tossing down yet another losing hand.  

Langley laughed lightly as he gathered up the cards. "Just how did you end up cut anyhow when everyone else got shot?"  

"It was my loving little brother that saw fit to stab me. He got jealous because he took a bullet but I was fit as a fiddle."  

"Pa cut you?" Langley asked with laughter in his eyes.  

Jeremiah glared at him and pouted out the lip that was split from the punch Marston had delivered to it outside. "Yeah that bastard stabbed me. Are we gonna pay or chit chat?"  

"Give me a minute," Langley replied before doubling over with laughter and slapping at his thighs.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

    Pete walked back into town and swiped his arm over his dirty face. The smoke was rising over the small rise to the west and filing the horizon. Burning the bodies had been the easiest option. They had no way of digging that many graves in the frozen ground and there wasn’t anybody they knew of to transport the bodies to—these men hadn’t had loved ones. 

    Pete had watched the bodies burn and had only left when nothing but smoldering ashes remained. What was left of the bones would be placed in a casket, kept in the back room of the undertakers and buried once Spring arrived. 

    Now he need to get to the hotel, get a bath and get back to Kaitlyn. He needed to hold his wife. He was headed for the hotel when a familiar voice reached his ears. 

    “Edmund, have you seen Pete? Is he okay?” Kaitlyn’s voice pleaded with desperation. 

    “He’s fine. He’s….” 

    “Kaitlyn?” Pete interrupted Edmund. 

    Kaitlyn turned and Pete’s eyes drank in the sight of her. She was tired. Her face was pale. Her hair was a mess and there was blood on her skirt. She was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen. 

    “Pete!” she gasped before running toward him. Her feet slipped and slid in the mud. Pete closed the distance between them, wrapped his arms around her, pulled her off her feet and spun her around until she was laughing breathlessly. 

    “God, Kaitlyn, but you’re a sight for sore eyes,” he whispered as he held her tightly. 

    “So are you,” she replied as he sat her on her feet. She laid her hand on his scarred cheek and smiled. “I was terrified when you didn’t come back with everyone else.” 

    “I’m sorry I worried you,” Pete replied, covering her hand with his. “I just wanted to stay in town awhile to clean the mess and make sure no one else got hurt.” 

    “I know.” Kaitlyn nodded. “You’re a good man.”

    Pete slid a lock of messy hair behind her ear. “How is everyone at home?”

    “They’ll be fine. Pa broke a rib so he’ll be mean as a bear for a while. Duke had a bullet lodged in his shoulder so he’ll probably be growly himself.” Her green eyes narrowed. “Pa told me you were shot as well.” 

    Pete pulled his arm from his coat to show her the graze wound. “It’s just a scratch,” he promised. “Nothing serious. Plus I know a pretty little doctor here in town that’s sure to patch me up real good.” 

    Kaitlyn blushed and stared down at her feet. Pete’s smiled widened and he kissed her brow. “I guess I should be getting you home before it gets dark. Your family will worry.” 

    Kaitlyn mumbled something but Pete was unable to make it out as she stared down at the ground. He put his finger under her chin and lifted her face. “What did you say?” 

    Kaitlyn’s face was hot enough to fry an egg and her hands were shaking. “I said that I told everyone that we may not be home tonight because we may get a hotel room.” 

    Pete damn near swallowed his tongue. “R..really?” he croaked around the dryness that had suddenly grasped his throat. 

    “Yes,” Kaitlyn replied before nibbling at her tiny bottom lip. 

    That nibble was Pete’s undoing. 

    He grabbed Kaitlyn by the hand and led her toward the hotel. His feet became tangled together in his anxiousness and Pete found himself sprawling face first in the mud.

    Kaitlyn gasped but Pete came up laughing, his face dripping and his eyes and teeth the only things visible beneath the brown. Without a word, he pulled her inside the hotel and up to the counter. 

    The clerk, Cedric Holloway, a prim and proper man who wore a monocle, nearly screamed at the sight Pete made. “Can I help you?” he asked, swallowing hard and curling his nose. 

    “My wife and I need a room,” Pete replied, the white in his smile contrasting sharply with the mud on his face. A chunk of that mud fell from his nose and landed with a loud plop on the polished and gleaming counter. 

    “A bath too, sir?” Cedric asked dryly. 

    “Yeah. A bath would be good,” Pete agreed. 

    Cedric placed the key in Kaitlyn’s much cleaner hand. “Room seventeen. Upstairs.” 

    She handed Pete the key and pulled away from him. “You go on up to the room and get cleaned up. I’ll go to the mercantile and get us both something clean to put on.” 

    Pete looked down at the mud, blood and soot covering him and nodded. “That’s probably a good idea.” 

---

    Kaitlyn had a sack of clothes tucked under one arm and a tray with two plates when she stopped in front of the door to the room she would be sharing with Pete tonight. 

    Nerves attacked her stomach. She knew what was going to happen in that room. Kaitlyn was going to give Pete her body. 

    Kaitlyn trusted him and she knew he wouldn’t hurt her but that didn’t stop the tiniest bit of fear from creeping in. What if she disappointed him? 

    Pushing that pointless thought to the side, Kaitlyn knocked lightly on the door. “Just a minute!” Pete called from inside. 

    Several moments later the door was pulled open and Kaitlyn’s breath became trapped in her throat. Pete had already taken that bath and gone was the mud and grime he’d been covered in. Droplets of water glittered on his skin and ran down his bare torso to be soaked into the towel that was slung around his hips. 

    “Um….” Kaitlyn forced her gaze down to the tray in her hand as her ears began to burn. “You’re not wearing any clothes.” 

    Pete laughed. “I’m wearing a towel.” 

    Kaitlyn cleared her throat. “I brought dinner,” she announced, shoving the tray toward him. 

    Pete took it from her hands. “That’s good. My stomach was fixing to eat its way right through my backbone.” 

    Kaitlyn tried to look away from him but found that she couldn’t as the muscles in his lean body tightened and twisted with his movements. He sat the tray on a small table in the corner and rolled his shoulder as he turned back to Kaitlyn. 

    “Let’s eat,” he said, his voice a bit deeper than it had been a moment ago. Kaitlyn nodded and pulled off her bonnet and coat, laying them both across the chair beside the door. 

    They began to eat in silence at the small table and the silence was more than Kaitlyn could stand. She had to make some sort of conversation. Her body was on edge thinking about what would happen after they finished their meal and Kaitlyn could tell by the look in Pete’s eyes that he was thinking about it too.

    “Pa said that all the men are dead,” she said before taking a bite of her potatoes. 

    Pete nodded. “That’s right. You don’t have to worry about Vincent anymore. He won’t ever hurt you again.” 

    “Did you kill him?” Kaitlyn asked without meeting his eyes. 

    Pete’s hand paused while bringing a chunk of steak of to his mouth. “Yes, I did.” 

    Kaitlyn met his gaze then. “Good.” 

    Pete shivered and sat his fork down. “The whole thing only lasted about five minutes but it was terrible. I’m a lawman. I’m supposed to restore justice and most of that just felt like mayhem and murder.” 

    Kaitlyn stood up and walked around the table to him. She yelped with surprise when Pete grabbed her around the waist and pulled her onto his lap. Feeling his hot skin against her, Kaitlyn became all too aware of the fact that he wore nothing but a towel.

    “You, my pa and my uncles did what you had to do, Pete,” she said gently. “There’s nothing to be ashamed of in what you did.” 

    Pete smoothed her hair and pressed a tender kiss to her jaw. “That’s what I keep telling myself.”    

    “How many men did you….” Kaitlyn stopped speaking quickly and bit her lip. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t ask you that.” 

    Pete rested his chin on her shoulder. “You can ask me anything. You’re my wife, you know.” 

    Kaitlyn smiled. “I know.” 

    “I killed two and a half men,” Pete said a moment later. 

    Kaitlyn frowned at him. “Two and a half? How do you kill two and a half men?” 

    “Well Marston and I both put a bullet in the third man so I figure that we get to split that in half.” 

    Pete’s finger traced the waistline of her dress and Kaitlyn’s pulse began to race. But she still had more that she wanted to know. “Did you see my pa get shot?” 

    Pete sighed. “This isn’t exactly what I had in mind when you mentioned getting this hotel room,” he admitted, his hand moving higher. Kaitlyn put her hand on his to stop him and he grumbled. “I was there when he got shot. He uh… he actually got shot saving me. He jumped in front of a bullet that was meant for me.” 

    Kaitlyn’s eyes widened. “He did?” 

    “Yes.” 

    “You almost died?” 

    Pete couldn’t lie to her. “Yes.” 

    He saw her eyes fill with tears just before she closed them. Pete laid tender kisses to her eyelids before moving his lips along her jaw and down to her slender neck. 

    “I’m not hungry anymore,” he whispered. 

    “You’re not?” she gasped, her heart thundering against her ribs. 

    Pete smiled against her racing pulse. “We’re a few days late for that wedding night. What do you say we make up for it?” 

    Kaitlyn was trembling, shaking and overheated with want and longing. “Okay,” she whispered. 

    Pete stood and placed Kaitlyn on her feet. He ran his hand over her soft cheek and she looked up into his brown eyes. “Are you sure this is what you want, Kaitlyn?” 

    His hand slowly dropped down her side, his fingertips tracing her slender frame. Suddenly Kaitlyn knew she had never been more sure of anything in her life. She wanted Pete and with his brown eyes staring at her so patiently and with so much love, she felt all her fear melt away. 

    She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m sure, Pete.”

    Pete smiled before once again lowering his mouth to her neck. “Thank you,” Pete whispered just before Kaitlyn’s eyes slipped closed and her knees weakened. 

    Kaitlyn was breathless. “For what?” 

    Pete scooped her up and carried her toward the bed. “For trusting me.” 

    Placing her on her feet, Pete slowly began to remove her clothes, worshiping every inch of her pale skin as it became visible to him. 

    Pete’s roaming hands and hungry lips lit a fire and brought to life a passion in Kaitlyn that she had never in her life felt before. He took her so high that when he finally slid from the towel and buried himself inside of her, Kaitlyn felt only pleasure and had no room for fear. 

    Their moans of ecstasy mingled in the darkening hotel room. Pete buried his face in her neck as he stiffened and her name flew from his lips. Nearly at the same instant Kaitlyn felt the band of pleasure tightening within her snap and she was blinding with the intensity of it. 

    It left her breathless and clinging desperately to the firm skin of Pete’s back. Slowly she floated back down to the room and the bed…. She collapsed against her pillow, her body humming. 

    Pete stood and lit several candles to brighten the darkness. He added some wood to the fire and Kaitlyn enjoyed the sight of his long, lean body as he moved about the room before rejoining him in bed. 

    There was no need for words as Kaitlyn and Pete curled up together and listened to the clock tick upon the wall. Kaitlyn found her sated body drifting off to sleep only to be wakened up in the night and made love to even more thoroughly than the first time. 

---

    Pete and Kaitlyn stepped into the family kitchen the next morning to find that everyone was gathered there eating breakfast. Kaitlyn crossed the room quickly and threw her arms around her pa’s neck. 

    He grimaced in pain but didn’t speak a word of complaint as he hugged her back. “Pa?” she whispered in his ear. “Pete told me what you did. Thank you.” 

    “What did he tell you?” Marston grumbled, fixing Pete with a look that had him wishing he’d never spoken a word to Kaitlyn. 

    “That you took that bullet meant for him by jumping in its path,” Kaitlyn replied loudly enough for the entire table to hear. 

    A chorus of disbelief filled the kitchen. Jeremiah slammed his hand on the table and stood up. “Well, that’s a bunch of horseshit! How many times have you stood by and let me be shot up because it’s every man for himself?”

    “I always just figured those men were saving me a bullet,” Marston grumbled. “Now sit the hell down.” 

    Jeremiah was cursing under his breath as he slumped himself back down in his chair. 

    “Thank you for what you did pa,” Kaitlyn said as she wiped away a tear and folded her hands in front of her. 

    Marston shifted in his chair, waved his hand and attempted to go back to eating. Rose laid her hand on his arm and smiled so brightly she lit up the kitchen. 

    Marston tossed down his fork. “Now y’all have gone and ruined my damn appetite.” 

    “That’s just too bad,” Kaitlyn replied as Pete pulled out her chair and she took her seat. 

    “Still can’t believe you took a bullet for someone,” Jeremiah grumbled. 

    “Why don’t we just say I tripped and fell into the damned thing?” Marston snapped. 

    “Whatever helps you sleep at night, Marston,” Duke agreed.

    “Hey, Pete, guess what I did,” Lucy cheerfully spoke up as she wiped her gravy covered chin on the sleeve of her dress. 

    “What did you do?” Pete asked with a grin. 

    “I kicked a man right between his legs to get him to let me go. It worked too!” 

    Pete grimaced. “I would say so!” 

    “Yes, well, I think the last few days have held just about all the excitement we can handle for a while,” Rose insisted. 

    A murmur of agreement passed over the table. “I’m heading out in the morning,” Jeremiah admitted. “You coming with me Duke?” 

    Duke’s gaze passed between Carol and Jeremiah and the look on his face told Pete the man wanted to be anywhere but sitting between them. “Uh.. no. I’m not.” 

    “Why the hell not?” Jeremiah exclaimed. 

    “It’s time for me to be settling down, Jeremiah,” Duke insisted. “I’m not a young man anymore. I was hoping I could stay here with Marston and that Carol could stay with me.” 

    Rose and Marston shared a look. It was clear that Marston wanted to refuse but even clearer that Rose was not about to allow him to. “Of course you can stay here, Duke. You’re family.” 

    “I’m leaving with Uncle Jeremiah,” Langley announced. 

    Silence fell over the kitchen. 

    Langley swallowed hard but looked his pa in the eye. Marston stood slowly and the look he sent in Jeremiah’s direction would have had hell freezing over solid. “This is the first time I’m hearing about it!” Jeremiah vowed, holding up his hands.

    “Pa, don’t be mad!” Langley begged. 

    “Langley, why would you want to leave?” Rose questioned tearfully. 

    “Don’t cry, mama!” Langley pleaded. “I just want to go out there and see what there is to see. I’m a grown man now and I want to see this country. I’ll come back home once I’ve seen all I want to see and then I’ll settle down right here and never leave again.” 

    Pete squeezed Kaitlyn’s hand as she trembled and Rose’s chin quivered. Marston’s jaw popped with tension. “You do whatever you need to do, Langley,” Marston growled before turning and walking away. 

    The slamming of the front door signaled he’d left the house. Rose followed quickly after him. 

    “Mama and pa are mad at you!” Lucy exclaimed, pointing her chubby finger at her bother. “You’re in trouble!” 

    “I can come with you, can’t I, Uncle Jeremiah?” Langley asked. 

    Jeremiah shrugged. “Sure. I mean, you are a grown man after all.” 

    Kaitlyn shook her head. “Hush, Uncle Jeremiah! Don’t encourage him!” 

    Jeremiah flashed her a charming grin. “Did y’all have fun in town?” 

    “That’s none of your concern,” Pete warned. He didn’t much care for Jeremiah and he certainly wouldn’t have the man asking personal questions that weren’t any of his business.

           

    Jeremiah threw down his fork. “Well that’s about enough of that. If you’re coming with me, Langley, you need to get you shit. I’m leaving.” 

    Langley nodded and ran upstairs to pack a bag. 

---

        An hour later found the family bidding Langley goodbye. Marston shook his son’s hand instead of hugging him and then pulled Jeremiah to the side. “You better send my son back alive, you understand?” 

    “I’ll take care of him,” Jeremiah assured him. “Don’t worry. The boy just wants a bit of adventure, that’s all.” 

    Marston rubbed at his jaw. “Adventure can land your ass in a whole hell of a lot of trouble,” Marston muttered. 

    He went back to his wife and wrapped his am tight around her as they watched their son ride away. 

---

    “You’re taking this better than I thought you would,” Marston said to Rose that evening as they sat beside the fire in their room. 

    Rose sighed and took his hand. “I knew it was coming eventually. I had only hoped I still had a few years left.” 

    Marston frowned. “How did you know this was coming?” 

    “You lose your daughters to husbands and your sons to adventure,” Rose sighed wistfully. “That’s just the way of life. All we can hope is that he comes back soon. I only wish he had waited a while before leaving. His birthday is in a week and it will be the first one he’s ever spent without his family.” 

    “It’s not too late for me to hunt them down, shoot my brother and bring Langley back,” Marston offered. 

    Rose laughed. “And then our son would hate us forever.” 

    Marston nodded because he knew she was right. He sighed and leaned back in his chair. “I just tried to raise him different. I tried to teach him to work hard and be with his family. I didn’t want him to turn out like me.” 

    “I think if he turns out like you that certainly wouldn’t be a bad thing.” 

    “Rose, I did really bad things,” he warned. 

    She bit her lip. “I know but Langley won’t. He’s had your guidance and you aren’t the same man you once were. He’ll have a bit of fun and then he’ll come home to us. Trust me.” 

    Marston offered her a small smile and squeezed her hand. “I’ll take your word for it.” 

---

    “How could Langley do this?” Kaitlyn asked as she and Pete lay together beneath the covers and stared at the ceiling. 

    “He wants to experience life for himself,” Pete replied. “I did the same thing around his age.”

     “Yes, but you didn’t run off with your uncle who lives in saloons and brothels!” 

    Pete shook his head. “No, ma’am, I didn’t. My mama would have took the belt to my hind end.” 

    Kaitlyn snuggled closer. “My parents are so sad.” 

    “I’m real sorry that your family is upset,” Pete admitted. “But you are my main concern. What can I do to make you happy?”

    “Well… Kaitlyn blushed and bit he lip. “You could show me what you did with your tongue again. That made me pretty happy.” 

    Pete drew in a deep breath that nearly strangled him. “Really?” he gasped. 

    “Yeah, really.” 

    He gave her the wickedest grin he could muster and winked. “Well, yes ma’am.”

A/N: Thank you for reading! The next book in the series is ‘Give My All to Jessie’. There is also a short story about Duke and Carol called ‘Give My Soul to Carol’