Caden's Vow by Sarah McCarty Read Free Book Online

Miller of Hell’s Eight is here?”
    She nodded again. At least they knew Caden’s name. There might
be some protection in that.
    “Shit. Come here, girl. Let me have a look at you.”
    There wasn’t any choice but to go forward. She kneed Flower in
a gentle urge. The little horse walked sedately forward, showing none of the
trepidation that she had. Why didn’t anyone but her see the danger here?
    As if on cue, Worthless growled, low and deep in a way that
said he meant business. The leader pointed his gun. She had to do something. It
was easy and natural to slip back into the role of coquette. Shameful, even, the
ease with which she did it. Dropping her shoulders, tilting her head to the
side, leaning just that little bit forward, Maddie angled the horse between the
dog and the man.
    “Here, now. He doesn’t mean any harm.”
    “He’s not going to do any, either.”
    “But you might.”
    He cocked an eyebrow at her. “How’s that?”
    “Flower here isn’t used to guns.” She flipped her braid back
over her shoulder and trailed her fingers across the top of her chest. “If you
just go firing shots randomly, I might end up thrown, maybe even—” she ran a
hand down her thigh “—breaking a leg.”
    The transition from weary to interest was subtle, but she could
see it in the set of the men’s shoulders, the tip of their chins, the relaxing
of their hands on the reins.
    The man in the back with the faded brown hat spat and said,
“Would be a shame to break such pretty legs, boss.”
    As she suspected, the older man was the leader. His clothes
were of better quality, and his face sported less stubble, as if he took more
frequent care of his appearance. With a press of her knee, she shifted Flower’s
direction, putting herself closer to him. This was the man she had to
influence.
    His eyes traveled from the top of her head down to her waist
and then back up, stopping at her breasts. Men always liked her breasts. She
hated them. Fingers clawing, pinching; mouths slobbering. But there were
advantages to having big breasts.
    “You’re lying, girl.”
    Yes, she was, but not in the way he thought. He brought his
horse forward. The gelding towered over her little mare. He towered over her. He
rode all around, checking her gear from front to back.
    “That horse doesn’t bear the Hell’s Eight brand.”
    No, she didn’t. Because Maddie wouldn’t let her be hurt that
way. Caine had fussed. Tucker had pointed out the reasons. Even Shadow had tried
to tell her that it was okay, that it was necessary. Only Caden had understood.
Flower was hers. She wasn’t bringing her pain.
    She smiled wider, showing her dimples. Men loved her dimples.
Sure enough, the man’s eyes dropped to her mouth.
    “I rode up for the wedding celebration.”
    “Rode up, hmm? Hell’s Eight’s a day and a half away from any
town.”
    She shrugged. “I didn’t ride up alone.”
    “But you’re riding out alone.”
    She shrugged. “It wasn’t what I expected.”
    “I hear they aren’t too particular about the company they
keep.”
    She was used to men hating others because of the color of their
skin. It was always a cause for a fight in a whorehouse. The proprietors learned
quickly to separate out the Indians, otherwise they’d be replacing the furniture
every day. Maddie wasn’t sure the violence really had anything to do with the
color of the skin. Men just seemed to like to fight. Any excuse would do. Skin
color was just the easiest one.
    She nodded. “A girl’s got to have her standards.”
    One of the other men snorted. He was wearing the same dirty,
dusty brown shirt and pants as the others. The only thing that distinguished him
was his blond hair. “No way in hell the men of Hell’s Eight let a pretty little
thing like this slip out.”
    “I heard all of them were married up anyway.”
    “Not all of them and they’ve been hiring help.” She shuddered
delicately, feeding their assumptions. “Not a lot of single