Badland Bride by Lauri Robinson Read Free Book Online

convinced she was in charge of her rolling emotions, Lila scrubbed her hands and knees before wiping the sweat from the rest of her exposed skin. By the time she was done, Skeeter had built up the fire to provide more light near the tunnel entrance. She swished out the cloth, hung it on the edge of the wooden bucket, and walked toward the blaze.
    He crouched on his hands and knees, his head and shoulders stuck in the opening. Careful not to stand in his light, she asked. “Is it open? Can you see anything?"
    Slowly, he inched back, pulling his head out then his hands. A boulder half the size of the opening rolled out beneath his fingers. He grunted, shoved the rock further away from the hole. “I'm sorry, Lila. It's blocked."
    "Are you sure?” She knelt down and grimaced at the pain in her knees. Her hurried scrubbing had opened the abrasions caused by her long crawl, and left the skin tender and sensitive.
    He moved over, giving her free rein to examine the small opening. The only clear space was where the huge boulder had been. Other large rocks, thick sand, and baseball size stones created a solid wall from top to bottom. “How?” She twisted to look at him. “I didn't hear anything, didn't feel anything.” Glancing back to the tunnel, she added, “It's unbelievable."
    "The whole event is a little unbelievable.” His hand brushed her shoulder. “You, me, the tunnel."
    "Yes, it is.” She ran a hand through her hair, flipping the irritating curls away from her face. Her gaze snapped up. “What about the house? Maybe the other end of the tunnel is there.” She leaped to her feet. “Do you know where it would be?"
    He shrugged. “Sure, but I don't think you should get your hopes up."
    A cold chill showered her body. “Sometimes hope is all a person has."
    His hand, big and warm, wrapped around hers, encompassing it like a winter glove. With his other hand, he wiped a wayward curl from her face. “You're right. Let's go take a look."
    Half an hour later, Lila would have traded her new Mustang for a touch of that cold chill she felt back in the cave. Sweat oozed from every pore. Her bra, glued to her body, chaffed her skin beneath the hot, wet elastic. Following Skeeter down the steep cliff, she paused, slipped her fingers beneath her shirt and tugged on the wide band to ease the discomfort. He stilled, as if he sensed she'd stopped.
    Quickly, before he had a chance to turn around, she stepped forward, grabbed a protruding boulder near his shoulder and managed to fix an expectant look on her face.
    "You doing all right?” he asked with a quizzical stare.
    She nodded and glanced over his shoulder. “How much farther is it?"
    "A ways yet. You want to sit down for a minute?"
    "No, I'm fine.” She tried to sound believable.
    His gaze went to her feet. The flip-flops were not ideal walking shoes. Her toes ached from trying keep them on while they scaled the steep landscape.
    He didn't comment verbally. Didn't need to, his look said enough.
    She took another step forward. “We'll find some shade at the bottom to rest for a minute."
    He nodded, turned, and continued to descend.
    With a deep breath, she followed, cautiously stepping exactly were he had in order to avoid slipping on the sandstone crumbling beneath their feet. It wasn't long before he jumped off the final stepping stone. Though it was only about a two foot jump, she paused. He grabbed her waist and lifted her down before she had a chance to determine if her shoes would stay on or not.
    Once again his hand took hers, and he pulled her along the base of the high cliff to a shaded area. The ground was barren. Nothing could grow in the layers of the white, powdery stone. “Sit down and rest a bit,” he suggested.
    "Good idea. You must be hot.” She pointed at his long sleeved shirt.
    He knelt down, balanced on his toes. “Naw, I'm used to it. Is Kansas not as hot in the future?"
    Knowing when she got up the back side of her white shorts would be