Eden's Sin (16 page)

“
Mmm-Hmm.” Alice cocked a bushy brow. “Well, see you do. I’ll be at Hank’s if you need me.”

“
Wait. Have you heard how Corporal Ballard is doing?” Sinclair held his breath, waiting for the worst.

“
Doc says he’ll make it. Stitched him up and he’s sleeping now.”

Sinclair gave a long sigh.
“Good. Thank you.”

“
Mmm-Hmm.” Alice waddled away, toward the waiting Hank.

Father stood studying the smoking remains of the saloon.
“It doesn’t seem fair you lost your investment due to malicious intent of young Moreton.”

Eden turned, her gaze stubborn.
“No, sir, Judge, but I’ve found life is hardly ever fair.”

Worry bubbled in Sinclair’s gut. What was Father up to?

“It seems to me Moreton’s estate should pay you damages…”

Her eyes widened.
“Can you make him do that?”

“
I can. And I will.” He grinned, then offered his arm again. “You probably don’t know this, but I’ve always admired the kind of person who would come West and build a life.” They started walking. “Full of adventure, I suppose. Like Sinclair. He’s made us proud with his accomplishments out here. He’s serving under…”

Sinclair stood rooted to the street while Father and Eden strolled toward the tents. Tears knotted in his throat.
All this time his parents had been proud of him and he’d never known.
Because I was too stubborn to talk to them, too stubborn to visit them. Too stubborn to trust in love.

He wasn’t making that mistake again.
He swallowed hard.

“
Eden?”

She
turned and held out her hand, her expression full of hope and trust and love.

Striding forward, he clasped her fingers.
“I’ll love you for forever,” he whispered.

Two nights later…

Sin and Eden lay
snuggled on his small cot. His heat soaked into her tired bones, chasing away the chill just as his love chased away the nightmares of everything that had transpired the last three days.

There was nothing left of
Devil’s Gate but charred wood and tin, all of her possessions gone, and yet it really didn’t matter. Sophia was safe and neither Senator Moreton nor Alexander could hurt anyone again.

S
omehow amid all the lies and evilness, she’d gained self respect and the love of the best man God ever made, the man who currently trailed a finger down her bare arm and brushed a kiss to her forehead, one to each eyelid, one to the end of her nose.

Her insides went to mush.
How could simple acceptance feel so wonderful? How could she of all people be so happy?
What if it doesn’t last?
Doubt invaded her thoughts. What if Sophia didn’t want to live here?

No, she would. Everything would be fine.

“You’re frowning,” Sin whispered. “Tell me what’s wrong.” He leaned over her, shadows from the lone candle dancing on the canvas wall.

“
Nothing...really.”

He cocked his dark
brow.

“
Aren’t you excited about the trip tomorrow? About getting married?”

“
Yes, I’m just a little worried about seeing Sophia again. I’ve only been able to visit her a few times over the years, and she doesn’t know how I’ve made money.”

“
She knows you’ve made sure she was cared for. That’s all that matters.”

Eden nodded.
“But what if she’s not happy here? Ladore isn’t exactly St. Louis.”

“
No, but it’s got one thing St. Louis doesn’t.
You
.” He winked. “That’s enough to make me want to stay.”

“
Really?” She leaned up on one elbow, tilting her head so she could see his expression. “You’d be willing to stay?” She pushed down the fear he’d hate her idea.

“
What do you mean?”

“
If—when—your duty is done with the army, could you be happy living here, making a home here?”

“
Why do you ask?”

She swallowed
and pressed forward in a rush. “Alice wants to buy the Ladore Hotel and restaurant. She wants me to put up half the money. You and I—and Sophia and Bryan—could have the entire top floor to turn into our home. Alice wants the back room off the kitchen for herself. There’s a perfect spot in the side yard for a large garden.”

Sin looked
at her like she’d lost her mind.

“
You hate the idea.” Why was she surprised? He never said he wanted to stay in Ladore past his army assignment.

“
No. I don’t.” He grinned, the crease running down his whiskered cheek. “I was approached today by several of the business men.” He blew a long breath. “They’ve ask me to stay on and become the sheriff—once the Katy moves on. I’ll have to fulfill my duties to the army for a few more weeks but then…”

“
Really? What did you tell the business men?”

“
Nothing yet. I wanted to talk to you first.”

Warmth filled her, an overwhelming feeling of rightness
. He considered her opinion before making a decision. No one had ever done that.
Ever.
No man had ever been willing to risk his good name, his career…all for her. This man who abhorred lying, had lied for her. Taken the blame for something she did.

She brushed a kiss to his cheek.
“I’ll be happy wherever you are.” And she would. Whether she lived as an army wife moving from fort to fort or as a sheriff’s wife here in Ladore, as long as she had Sin and the children, she would be happy. Hell, she
was
happy. If some people in Ladore couldn’t accept who she’d been, what she’d done before marrying Sin, then she didn’t need or want those people as friends—or guests at her hotel.

“
I feel the same.” He lowered his head and nuzzled her neck.

“
So are we buying…
God, it was hard to talk with him doing that
… a hotel?”

“
Sounds like it.” He slipped his hand between their bodies and unbuttoned her chemise, kissing his way over the swell of her breasts.

“
Sin, what are you doing?” she teased.

She could feel him smile against her skin.

“If you don’t know, then I’m not doing it correctly.”

“
Oh, I’ve got no complaints. I trust you know what to do.”

He raised his dark head, his question plain on his face.

“Yes,” she whispered, “I trust you. With my body, my pleasure, my heart and soul. There’s no one I trust more.”

He swallowed hard. Twice. T
he air between them thickened until they were sharing the same breath. “I trust you too.” He brushed his thumb over her bottom lip. “Something I never thought I’d say to a woman—especially one so gifted at omitting the truth.” He grinned.

She swatted his shoulder.
“You’d best settle down.”

“
Or what?” He rolled them until she sat astraddle his hips.

“
Let me show you…”

And she did.

THE END

***

Scroll down for an excerpt from more books in the
STEAM!
Rail and Romance Series.

Excerpt from…

ADELLA’S ENEMY

(A novella in the PASSION’S PRIZE anthology)

By Jacqui Nelson

New Chicago, Kansas—340 miles north of the Indian Territory border

March 28, 1870

“It’s one of the Joy Men.” The declaration
came from the workmen’s leader—a giant of an Irishman—hidden somewhere beyond the wall of bodies between her and the train.

A spy for the rival railroad? If James Joy had sent a rabble rouser from his line, she’d best learn as much about him as possible. Starting with what he looked like.

She pushed through the workmen. Each man spun with a scowl, ready to berate whoever poked him in the ribs or stepped on his toes. When they saw her, they stumbled back, jaws dropping. She reached the platform’s edge just in time to see the man on the stockcar leap to the engine, run across its back and slid down the cattle guard to the ground.

The big Irishman shoved through his men with a growl. “Why aren’t you chasing after—?” He slammed to a halt in front of her. He hadn’t touched her, but the sight of him looming over her with a combination of anger and disbelief twisting his mud-streaked face, pushed her back. She teetered on the edge of the train platform, the weight of her valise throwing her further off balance. Many hands reached for her, including the giant’s.

She refused to let go of her valise and accept them.

She fell with a shriek. Her rear end hit the mud with a bruising wallop. She gritted her teeth to stop any additional embarrassing outbursts then, valise still in hand, staggered to her feet. And promptly sank ankle deep in the muck.

A colossal groan rent the air. She jerked round to face the train, as did the workmen on the platform above her. The terrible sound came again, making the stockcar shudder with its force. A crack like gunfire echoed. Chains burst. Iron screeched against iron. And the mountain of rails toppled toward her. Trapped as she was in the muck below, she’d soon be crushed in a muddy grave. Fear devoured all further thought.

A broad hand clamped round her arm and yanked. Her feet popped from the mud, and she sailed through the air before landing on the platform. The hand released her. Shock rendered her legs useless, crumpling her like a rag doll on the boards beside her valise.

With the force of Thor’s hammer, the first rail struck the earth. A shower of mud pelted the platform on either side of her. The clanging that followed left her ears ringing.

“Did I hurt you?” the giant’s now familiar brogue whispered, so close it raised goose flesh.

Lifting her head, she stared into eyes as silver as newly minted dollars, the only difference in a face as muddy as the rest. The man’s massive frame crouched protectively over her. She was bombarded with memories of her mother’s stories, tales passed down for generations of legendary Celtic warriors. She had never dreamed of encountering one of those mythical men in human form.

***
Excerpt from Her Bodyguard ( Part of the
STEAM!
Series) by E.E. Burke

Chapter 1

March 1, 1870

Former Cherokee Neutral Lands, Southeast
Kansas

Hell must be like this. Not lit with blazing fires, but cold and gray, barren as the dead prairie. Even the wind howled like a deranged demon, flinging bits of ice into Buck’s face. He drew the blanket and oilskin tighter, though nothing warmed the persistent chill in his bones, which had gotten worse as he’d ridden northward through Indian Territory and into Kansas. Considering he was as good as dead in this state, it seemed fitting somehow he’d entered the abode of the damned.

He patted Goliath’s neck, glad for the company of his horse. He had few acquaintances, even fewer friends, and none who would risk their necks for another man’s cause. Although at this point, freezing to death seemed more likely than being lynched.

The saddle creaked as he straightened. All around, he saw nothing but mounds of switch grass and stunted trees. No houses or barns, not even smoke from a chimney. He swore, his breath sending out a white cloud. The wind snatched it away
.
Reaching Girard before dark had been his plan, so he could buy a hot meal and a warm bed before meeting with his cousin to get more details on the job he’d come to do. But he couldn’t risk going on. He had to find shelter. The fading daylight and worsening sleet made it difficult to see, but was that something just ahead?

Buck touched his heels to stallion’s sides. The ‘something’ turned out to be a buggy, slumped to one side. Beside the horse that’d been pulling it stood a woman huddled in a cloak, apparently trying to remove the traces. What the hell was she doing out here all by herself?

Unease rippled through him. He’d made it a habit to avoid damsels in distress after being betrayed by one. However, he couldn’t very well leave a woman out here on a lonely road in the middle of an ice storm. He kicked Goliath into a fast trot.

On his way to her, he rode past the buggy’s rear wheel lying on its side in the brush like a wounded animal. Odd, he’d
never seen a wheel fly off like that. Generally, the metal rim popped or a spoke snapped. Had the axle nut been loose when she started out? She was damn lucky the buggy hadn’t rolled over on her. He had seen
that
happen and it wasn’t a pretty picture.

His stallion whinnied, excited by the scent of the woman’s horse. Her horse threw its head and answered.
The lady hadn’t noticed him because she was so focused on unhitching the fidgety bay, but now she whirled around. Her hood, drawn low over her face, shadowed her expression but it was clear by her startled response she hadn’t expected anyone to come up on her. Rather than calling out for help, as Buck anticipated, she darted toward the buggy’s compartment.