Carol Finch (11 page)

She
was
going to become independent, she promised herself. With a few more lessons she wouldn’t have to rely on any man. That thought inspired her to pick up the pace as the procession headed east.

T
he procession ascended the steep grade, winding through rocky gorges and juniper-choked ravines to reach the lofty peak that Quinn referred to as Hell’s Ridge. Piper made an effort to emulate the way the men moved in synchronized rhythm with their horses to keep their balance. If nothing else, she was learning to adjust to unfamiliar surroundings and she was living the kind of adventure she had yearned for and had been deprived of in polite society.

For once she wasn’t subjected to her father’s demanding expectations.

In addition, Piper had the chance to spend time with the first man she actually found herself physically attracted to, a man she had managed to get attached to in a short span of time. When she compared Quinn Callahan to John Foster, there was simply no contest.

Quinn was a man’s man, a warrior’s warrior. He was the epitome of strength, courage and well-honed skills.
Her would-be fiancé was none of those things and Piper had nothing but lukewarm reactions to him. Her would-be fiancé was simply the extension of his father’s will. John Foster was content to take over the business without spreading his wings and asking himself if there was another life that better suited his own wants, needs and desires.

Piper’s gaze swung sideways to survey Quinn in profile. If she were forced to choose a man to spend her life with Quinn Callahan would be her pick. He excited her, challenged her and didn’t condemn her because she was teeming with spirit. For sure and certain, there would be nothing dull or mundane about a match with this rugged Texas Ranger.

Piper blinked, wondering where that preposterous thought had come from. The very last thing a man like Quinn wanted was a wife. He never stayed in the same place long enough for grass to grow beneath his feet.

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

She was jolted back to the present by Quinn’s abrupt question. For a moment she considered telling a fib, but then she recalled her vow of honesty with Quinn. A wry smile quirked her lips, wondering how he would react when she voiced her private thoughts. Well, there was only one way to find out, wasn’t there?

“I was contemplating what it would be like to be married to you instead of the dandy Papa selected for me.” She shrugged nonchalantly. “This is all hypothetical, of course. Just a way of passing the time.”

He blinked, startled. “Yeah? And what did you decide? Hypothetically, of course.”

Piper grinned when she noticed the sparkle of curiosity in his amber eyes. “You won hands down.”

His eyebrows shot up and his jaw dropped. “I did?”

“Absolutely. Compared to John Foster you have barrel loads of personality and admirable traits. If there is one thing I can say about our association, Callahan, it is that it has been an eventful adventure.”

“And
dangerous,
” he emphasized, staring at her so oddly that she wondered what was running through that quick mind of his. “Ours would likely be a short-lived marriage. If we didn’t kill each other first, the decreased life expectancy in this part of the country probably would.”

“Nonetheless, I have done more living this past week and have gained more practical experience in the past few days than I accumulated in all the years that I resided in Houston and Galveston,” she maintained. “I predict that I can cram more living into a month, while following you around, than I could in a year at home.”

“So marry me,” he suggested flippantly. “That would ensure that your father couldn’t hand you over to this Foster character he picked out for you.”

Piper stared goggle-eyed at him. It was a convenient solution to her problem, come to think of it. But what would Quinn get out of the arrangement? Other than legal license to her body for his sexual pleasure.

And hers perhaps…? A slow burn worked its way through Piper’s body as she followed the trail that led to a spire of jagged rocks. For the first time in her life she wanted to know what it was like to experience passion. She’d had only a small taste of it recently—with
Quinn. The truth was that she had wanted more. But how much more?

“Snap out of it, Sullivan,” Quinn demanded when she continued to stare speculatively at him. “You’re staring again. A friend of mine told me that was rude.”

“If we did marry,” she ventured, “what would you expect to gain from the arrangement?”

“Hypothetically speaking?” he teased, his bronzed face crinkling with amusement.

“Of course,” she said, enormously affected by one of his rare smiles.

“Unlimited sex comes quickly to mind,” he said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Piper felt her face burst into flames and she suspected that Quinn was purposely goading her. Well, two could play that game, she decided. “That goes without saying. I would be all for that, of course. I am very much interested in new experiences, after all.”

It was his turn to gape at her. She also noticed that he was squirming uncomfortably on his horse. Piper was amazed that she could discuss such a private matter with a man. It certainly wasn’t acceptable in polite society. But then, she had recently discovered that she felt at ease discussing almost everything with Quinn. He had become her confidant and friend, and the possibility of being his lover appealed to her far more than it probably should have.

“I thought perhaps the opportunity to share my inheritance might be the determining factor in your offer of marriage,” she added belatedly.

He gave her a smoldering glance that sent another
wave of fire coursing through her body. “When I look at you, I guarantee that I don’t see dollar signs, Piper,” he said huskily. “Besides, I have no doubt that your father would disinherit you faster than he disowned Penelope after taking one disapproving look at me.”

Piper surveyed him for a long, pensive moment, seeing a tough, courageous warrior who answered to no man. “Then my father would be a fool for rejecting you. Furthermore, he can keep his money because, from my experience, it comes with stifling restrictions and too many strings attached.”

Leaving Quinn to stare bewilderedly at her, Piper nudged her horse to precede him up the trail that had again narrowed to such extremes that riding single file was imperative.

Roarke Sullivan leaned back in his chair at his desk when the city marshal entered the office. Drake’s mouth was set in such a grim line that Roarke’s senses went on full alert. Whatever news Drake had received obviously wasn’t good.

“What’s happened?” Roarke demanded immediately. “Have you received word about my daughter?”

Drake halted in front of the desk and Roarke reflexively surged to his feet. It was his policy never to allow anyone to tower over him, as if he were at a disadvantage.

“I received a telegram from Commander Scott Butler,” the marshal murmured, refusing to meet Roarke’s direct stare.

“And?” Roarke prodded impatiently.

“There was only one woman reported to be riding the
westbound stage from Fort Stockton to Fort Davis this past week. She was an old widow, swathed in black from head to toe. She was wearing a veiled hat that concealed her face.”

Hope rose inside Roarke. “That has to be Piper. She might not have the good sense to go racing off unchaperoned, but she is certainly clever enough to disguise herself for protection and try to conceal her identity. So, has she arrived at the garrison to be with her sister?”

William Drake shook his head, then handed over the telegram. “The stage was robbed and the coach crashed on a cliff in the mountains.”

Roarke howled in dismay as he read the missive.

“I’m terribly sorry, Mr. Sullivan. If you read the entire message you know that the rescue party of Rangers found part of the wreckage strewn on the mountainside and the rest washed away in the fast-moving stream below. The veiled hat was snagged in a scrub bush.”

Roarke sat down before he fell down. Piper was presumed dead? His young daughter was gone? Her remains had washed downstream to be picked apart by the wolves, mountain lions or bobcats that prowled that godforsaken region of Texas?

Grief and regret plowed into Roarke so quickly that it stole his breath and drained the color from his ruddy cheeks. “Dear God in heaven!” he wheezed as he half collapsed in his chair.

“The Ranger commander promised to send a detailed report of the accident after further investigation,” Drake went on to say.

Roarke heaved himself back to his feet, his mind
whirling. He had arrangements to make before his trip to Fort Davis. If this bleak report proved to be accurate then he had no recourse but to contact Penelope. Despite his disappointment in her decision to marry that army captain she had foolishly fallen in love with three years earlier he was compelled to see her again.

My God, he might have lost one daughter, but he couldn’t bear to lose them both!

Leaving Drake standing where he was, Roarke pelted through the door to the warehouse behind the office. He wasted no time locating his second-in-command. He was bound for Austin on the train. From there he would hop the first stage headed southwest. If Piper had miraculously survived the catastrophe he would find her—somehow.

If she hadn’t survived… The image of Piper staring up at him, bursting with irrepressible spirit and determination, nearly knocked him to his knees.

It can’t be,
came the frantic voice of denial. He couldn’t have lost her. He had doted on Piper after Penelope defied his wishes. He had put all his efforts into molding and grooming Piper to become the perfect wife for a wealthy Galveston aristocrat.

Damnation, he’d had such high hopes for his young daughter. She had angered him constantly with her resistance and her insistence on controlling her own destiny, but he had been confident that she would eventually obey his command.

Never once had Roarke considered the possibility of losing Piper forever.

If the preliminary report was true, then Roarke had
no recourse but to bring Penelope back to Galveston, because she would be his only heir. He would dissolve her ill-advised marriage to Captain Duncan if he must, but he
would
protect Penelope, as he
should
have protected Piper from harm.

On that determined thought, Roarke made the necessary arrangements with his second-in-command. Then he dashed home to pack a bag. He would try to find Piper. He would refuse to give up hope until he knew beyond all doubt that she had perished. Then he would reconcile with Penelope and bring her home where she belonged.

Roarke had lost his wife to illness years ago, and now perhaps his younger daughter. But he would
not
lose Penelope, too!

Quinn made the arduous trek to Hell’s Ridge by high noon. Although Piper hadn’t voiced a single word of complaint he had kept a close eye on her and noticed she had begun to look fatigued. She’d had quite a scare that morning, followed by a difficult ride over unforgiving terrain without the convenience of a saddle to anchor herself to.

Being an inexperienced rider, she’d had a couple of near misses on the treacherous trail. Quinn could see the determination etched on her enchanting face and he knew she intended to test herself to the limits and gain experience in survival—no matter what extremes she encountered.

Although Quinn had tried hard to remain focused on his mission, it had been nearly impossible after he had
impulsively popped off with the suggestion that Piper marry him to counter her father’s plans. What the hell had he been thinking? And for Piper to say that she preferred him to her wealthy fiancé from Galveston? What had
she
been thinking?

Quinn sighed heavily as he dismounted to lead the procession down a winding footpath to yet another rock-covered arroyo. He was pretty sure now that he couldn’t deal with Piper’s new policy of straightforward honesty. True, he had informed her that he disliked deceit and manipulation. Now she was out to prove that he could trust her to say exactly what she meant and tell him exactly what she felt.

That was
good…
and that was
bad.

He didn’t want to waste time speculating on what it would be like to wed this blue-eyed siren who was so distractingly attractive that he constantly battled lust at inappropriate moments. If he weren’t careful he would drive himself completely loco with erotic fantasies.

He would, however, agree to marry her in name only if it would resolve her conflict with her father and provide her with protection from adventurers looking to attach themselves to an heiress. But that would be the beginning and end of a marriage to Piper Sullivan, he told himself sensibly.

Never mind that there had been times—after discovering that she wasn’t the persnickety old crone, who had given him hell for the spite and sport of it—that he had only to look at her and wanted her badly. But Quinn refused to take something from Piper that should belong to a worthy, deserving man.

“You are awfully quiet, Gray Owl,” Red Hawk murmured from behind him.

“I have a lot on my mind.”

All these thoughts pertaining to Piper, and most especially her comment that she wouldn’t be adverse to a marriage between them, were playing havoc on his emotions. Damn, she had really knocked him for a loop with that. He still hadn’t gotten past it.

“Are you thinking of the bandoleros in
El Muerto Cañon?
” Red Hawk questioned.

Not even close,
thought Quinn. That’s where his mind should have been. But it wasn’t, damn it.

“Spotted Deer and I would like to offer our services to join the fight that will rid our sacred ground of those vicious Mexicans and white men. You could inform your commander that you have recruited us for the task,” he suggested hopefully.

Quinn glanced over his shoulder to see a shrewd sparkle in the Comanche’s coal-black eyes. He grinned in amusement. “That would solve your problem of being absent without permission from the reservation, wouldn’t it?”

“It would,” Spotted Deer spoke up. “Other tribe members have volunteered to scout for the army and the Rangers. It has to be better than confinement. And why not us? We know this territory as well as you do. And like you, Gray Owl, we have no family left that requires our assistance and support.”