Crossings by Stef Ann Holm Read Free Book Online Page A

team was another matter entirely. Her driving skills left much to be desired. Flatland, she could manage passably well, but she wasn’t worth a darn on grades.
    To keep her mind off the trail’s perilous conditions, she asked, “Where’s your dog?”
    â€œHome guarding the place.”
    One of the front wheels hit a chuckhole bigger than a barrel hoop. The buckboard lurched so hard, every joint rattled as if the nails would pop out. Helena’s heart jumped, and she suddenly wasn’t cold anymore as perspiration dampened her brow. “What was his name again?”
    â€œObsi.”
    She glanced at Carrigan, trying to stifle the queasiness in her stomach. “That’s an unusual name. What does it mean?”
    â€œIt’s short for Obsidian.” Looking dead ahead, Carrigan’s eyes narrowed. “Pay attention to the road.”
    Settling her gaze forward again, she stiffened. Furious at herself for allowing him to browbeat her, she gave the buckskins some leeway to demonstrate she wasn’t an unqualified driver. Daisy and Lucy began clopping along too fast for her comfort, but she didn’t want to draw attention to her error. As alarm rushed through her, she squeaked, “What made you think to call him that?”
    â€œHis coat is black.” Carrigan snapped his cigarette over the side of the buckboard. “Give me the reins.”
    Helena was loath to let him know she wasn’t skilled enough to handle the uneven terrain. His impatient order deflated her pride and made her defensive. “I’m capable of getting us there in one piece.”
    â€œThen quit talking and watch what you’re doing.”
    Her head swam trying to remember the instructions her father had given her for this kind of driving.She kept her feet spread apart for leverage, conscious of the brake handle near her right hand in case she needed to engage it quickly.
    She was keeping a modest pace when suddenly Carrigan seized the reins from her and shoved her head on his lap with his hand. Her muffled cry of outrage was lost in the smoky scent of his coat. She heard him holler at the horses to move right, cursing the command through clenched teeth. The traces on Daisy and Lucy strained as they veered sharply in the mandated direction.
    Helena struggled to sit up, her palm on Carrigan’s knee. After she pushed at him and demanded he let her go, he relented. Righting herself on the seat and flinging the top of her hood from her eyes, she was about to give him a piece of her mind. But the heavy-handed words melted like sugar on her tongue as soon as she saw what had happened.
    A telegraph pole had partly given way, the wire dangling dangerously over the road. She hadn’t seen it. If Carrigan hadn’t taken the reins from her, their necks could very well have been playing cat’s cradle with the cable.
    Shaken to the core, Helena sat there paralyzed and feeling as small as a grain of sand. She’d made a horrible miscalculation because of foolish indulgence. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, her voice breaking miserably.
    Leaning forward, Carrigan rested his forearms on his thighs, the reins dangling loosely between his fingers. Sun poured over him, his black hair gleaming in the light. He didn’t seem angry. To the contrary, he appeared to be more annoyed than anything else. “I’ll drive.”
    She mutely nodded, grateful he didn’t dress her down.
    Draping the slack leathers over the box, he turned toward her. “Trade places with me.”
    Helena stood. There was no way out of putting her ankle between Carrigan’s spread legs. Her tapered crinoline made it awkward to maneuver around him, though she tried to do so without touching any part of his body. This caused her to step on his foot, and as she was muttering a quick apology, his hands covered the swell of her hips. She tensed, heat infusing her cheeks. The strength in his fingers was