Brides of the West by Michèle Ann Young Read Free Book Online Page A

First
we gotta mend the fence, then I need to figure out what spooked
those steers. If it was a wolf or a cat, I gotta deal with it.” His
brow furrowed. “If them critters get a taste for tame prey, they
don’t never leave the herd alone. I either gotta chase it off for
good or kill it.”
    Tess felt sorry for the creature. “How will
we find our way back after dark?”
    “We don’t,” Raven said, dismounting. “We
camp. I’ll light a fire while Jake and the boys mend the
fence.”
    Jake touched the brim of his hat in
acknowledgement. He flung his saddlebag at the old Indian’s feet.
“Use whatever you need. Boys, follow me.” He turned his horse for
the fence.
    Matt and Dave followed him, their young faces
grimy and weary, but still game.
    Tess eased herself out of the saddle, keenly
aware of the stiffness in her thighs and the chafing of her nether
regions. It had been months since she’d been on horseback, and
never had she spent so long in the saddle at one time. The thought
of dipping her sore places in the cooling river below tempted her
greatly.
    Raven threw her a rope. “Here. Hobble your
horse to graze. I’ll fetch up water in a minute.” He pulled the
canteen from his horse.
    Hobble? She stared at his horse and realized
he had loosely tied its front feet together, so it couldn’t run.
She did the same to her mount. “I’ll get the water.”
    He cast her a sideways glance. “You can
walk?”
    He must have noticed her awkward gait.
“Easier than I can ride,” she replied with a chuckle.
    “You must go upstream, where the water runs
slow. It’s tricky. Better let me go.”
    She was sore, not an invalid. “I can
manage.”
    He gazed at her from those fierce black eyes
for a moment, then nodded. “You are a strong woman.”
    Ouch. He meant strong willed. Her greatest
fault according to Mother. Well she wasn’t going to change now, and
since it was all she had, her will would have to see her through.
She picked up all of the canteens and slung them over her
shoulder.
    She made her way past Jake and the boys
working on the fence. Dave waggled his fingers, but Jake didn’t
look up. He knew she was there. She sensed his knowing in every
fiber of her being, in the tension across his shoulders, the fixed
gaze on his hands and the subtle angling of his body away from her
so their eyes didn’t have to meet.
    His aversion could not be clearer.
    To hell with him.
    She trudged down the slope, slipping here and
there on the loose rock. This bank was clearly a deathtrap for the
unwary.
    At the bottom, she headed upstream,
clambering over rocks slick from spray, edging around boulders that
teetered on the brink of the rushing stream, enjoying the respite
from the sun. She could understand the cattle wanting to drink.
Perhaps thirst had driven them into this dangerous place?
    She rounded the bend, a sharp elbow of a
turn, and halted, mouth agape. It was a dead end. Water gushed from
a fissure in a wall of rock into a placid pool. Here, the gorge
narrowed to no more than a deep vee, with a pie slice of blue
directly overhead and a patch of springy grass at the water’s edge
surrounded by bushes and trees. Perfectly secluded. The
overwhelming need to feel clean turned the dust and sweat into a
tight crust on her skin. She glanced around. Everyone else was busy
with their chores. If she was quick...
    She ducked into the bushes and stripped out
of her borrowed clothes.
    ***
    Working swiftly, Jake knotted the ropes to
the standing post. “Here,” he said to Dave. “Run these down to the
post on the other side. Matt take the knife and cut the rope to
length like I showed you last week, then join it to that other
post. It’ll have to do ‘til we can get
some more rails up here to rebuild the fence. I’m goin’ to have a
look farther along and see if I can see what sent ‘em over the
edge, then I’ll come and see how you’re doin’. Right?”
    “Yes, boss,” Dave said with a grin. He set
off at a run,