Colt by Georgina Gentry Read Free Book Online

her hair and was drying it. Colt thought it looked like spun gold in the dim light. Muakatu. Moonlight. It had been an apt name for the captive. He knelt in front of her. “Are you hungry? Would you like some food?”
    She seemed to think about it, then nodded slowly. “Yes, but I must go back.”
    Olivia snorted. “She must be deaf or stupid.”
    Colt took both the girl’s worn hands in his two hands. “You can’t go back. Do you understand? Your husband will be coming to get you.”
    â€œLuther?” She frowned.
    â€œYes, I reckon that’s his name,” Colt said.
    â€œNo.” Her lip trembled, but she did not cry.
    â€œYou don’t want to go back to your husband?” Colt whispered.
    She shook her head.
    â€œGoodness gracious,” Olivia exclaimed. “What kind of woman is she? He’ll take her back to her old life, back to civilization, and she doesn’t even appreciate all our efforts.”
    â€œWe don’t know all there is to know,” he said. Then he looked deep into Hannah’s eyes. “All right, if you don’t want to go with Luther, I won’t let him take you.”
    For the very first time, the girl smiled and Colt wondered then why he had thought her plain. When she smiled, there was a shy beauty about her.
    Doc came in just then with a coffeepot, followed by the maid with a tray of sandwiches and some gingerbread. He put it all down on a table. “All right, everyone pull up a chair and we’ll eat.”
    The maid put small plates around the table and poured coffee. Colt could smell it from here and it smelled wonderful. The girl seemed to smell it, too, because she brightened. Colt took her hand and led her to the table, where she sat down uncertainly. It had probably been years since she’d used a chair, Colt thought.
    â€œWell?” Olivia said. “Lieutenant, aren’t you going to pull out my chair for me?”
    â€œOh, I’m so sorry, Miss Olivia.” Colt hurriedly pulled out her chair, and the dark beauty sat down with a rustle of fine petticoats.
    The girl stared at the sandwiches. Colt saw Doc slip a pill into her cup of coffee as he poured. Then Hannah reached out and grabbed a sandwich off the tray and began to wolf it down.
    â€œWell!” said Olivia. “What atrocious manners.”
    The girl continued to wolf her sandwich and gulp her coffee as the two men watched in pity.
    Doc reached out and patted her hand. “There’s plenty more, Mrs. Brownley.”
    Colt said, “Sometimes in a Comanche camp, the food gets pretty thin for the whole tribe.”
    Olivia looked around the table. “Oh, dear, are there no napkins?”
    Doc said, “I’m so sorry, Miss Murphy, I forget about how ladies are.” He turned to the maid. “There’s some on the table by the stove.”
    The stout, silent girl went off to get them.
    In the meantime, Hannah wiped her hands on her skirt and reached for another sandwich and gulped the last of her coffee.
    In a moment, the maid was back with the napkins and the others started to eat. Colt tried not to wolf his food, suddenly very conscious of his manners in front of the genteel Olivia. No one had ever taught him how a gentleman dines, and he had a feeling Olivia was watching with disapproval.
    Hannah was finished before the others. The doctor poured her another cup of coffee and put a piece of gingerbread on her plate. He offered her a fork, but she had already picked up the cake with her hands and tasted it. “Gingerbread.” She smiled.
    Colt found himself smiling back at her. “I’ll wager you haven’t had any gingerbread for a long time.”
    â€œShe’s eating it with her hands,” Olivia gasped in a shocked whisper.
    Hannah hesitated, looked embarrassed and uncertain.
    Doc said, “Look, I eat mine with my hands, too.” He picked up the gingerbread and took a bite. Colt