Snake lay against the pillow, feeling about as lively as a
slug.
"There's plenty to do before we start building, so don't
worry about talking to her tonight," Kid said.
"Talking to whom about what?" Summer asked as she
entered the tent.
Snake sought energy deep inside, but he was as empty as
hollow log.
"You, about the new house," Kid said, and then with a
wave, he disappeared out the flap.
Summer frowned as she stepped closer.
It seemed to weigh fifty pounds, but Snake lifted his hand,
encouraging her to step closer. "Hi."
"Hi." She sounded guarded.
He took her fingers when she was close enough, and
gritting his teeth, found the ability to scoot his hips over to
make as much room on the narrow cot as possible. "Sit
down."
She set a lantern on the table. The tiny flame behind the
glass globe flickered. "I need to check your wounds."
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"I know, but you can do that sitting down." She carried a
hesitancy he'd never seen before. Worry splattered his
insides. "It's going to be all right. I know the fire was scary,
but no one was injured, we have to be thankful for that."
Her fingers shook beneath his. He pulled, off balancing her
enough that she landed on the cot. The movement caused
shoots of pain, but he ignored them. Wrapping his hand
around the back of her neck, he tugged until their faces met
nose to nose.
"I don't even want to imagine how awful it could have
been if you hadn't smelled the smoke when you did."
She nibbled on her bottom lip as if she tried to keep
herself from speaking.
"Aw, sweetheart," he whispered, and kissed her—several
times before she relaxed and her lips moved in unison with
his. The action spurred a rejuvenation of his energy reserves.
Despite the fact he didn't want to, he stopped their kisses
before either of them grew too overheated. His reserve wasn't
that deep.
A flush covered her cheeks, making her look healthier than
when she'd entered the tent. "There," he said, kissing the tip
of her nose. "That's better. And now I'll let you look at my
wounds."
A smile parted her lips. "You'll let me?"
He nodded.
She gave him a haughty look. "Do you honestly think you
could stop me?"
"Do you honestly think I'd ever want to stop you?"
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Careful of the lit lantern, she pulled the table closer, but to
his delight, didn't move off the cot. She leaned closer,
examining the wound in his chest before dabbing the area
with a small square of cotton. "You tore open almost every
stitch."
"I know. Just bandage me up, I'll be fine."
"Sometimes things aren't fine. No matter how hard we
wish they were." She smoothed ointment over the healing
bullet hole. Her touch was soft, gentle, and caring.
"Why do I have a feeling you're not talking about my
injury."
She shrugged and laid a piece of material over the wound.
He lifted his shoulder and arm so she could wrap a strip
around his back to keep the bandage in place. After she tied it
off, she rose to her feet.
He caught her hand. "Where are you going?"
"Nowhere, but you need to take off your britches so I can
bandage your leg."
"No, it's fine."
Her look said his protests were useless. He glanced about.
"Give me the sheet off that bed."
"No, you have your own sheet."
He doubted he could stand long enough to take off his
britches, let alone climb back into bed quick enough for her
not to get a glimpse of how his body reacted to her. It may
be more worn out than a twenty-year-old work horse, but his
lust was as hearty as a stallion in its prime.
"Lift up," she said. "I'll pull the covers out from beneath so
you can cover up as you undress."
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He had the feeling it was she who was now doing the
teasing but didn't quite know for sure. If he was certain that
Bug or August wouldn't come barreling in, he'd not only drop
his britches, but entice her to shed her clothes as well—
exhausted or not.
"Up," she said, gathering a corner of the blankets. He
arched and in one swift movement, she had the blanket and
sheet out from beneath him and floating down to rest upon
him.
He had no choice but to wiggle out of his pants, and hold
the sheet tight over his mid-section as she bandaged and
wrapped his thigh. When she finished and flipped the blanket
back over his leg, he grabbed her waist and pulled her down.
She landed on top of him and instantly pushed her hands in
the mattress, lifting her weight off his leg.
"Snake, let me go. You're gonna make your wounds start
bleeding again."
"I don't care." He kissed her lips. "I won't bleed to death."
His tongue ran along the open space between her top and
bottom lips. "I've got a wonderful, beautiful doctor at hand."
"I'm not a doctor," she whispered, keeping her lips on his.
Her nearness had remarkable energy and healing power.
He plunged his tongue into her mouth. The need, the want,
building inside could no longer be sustained. The vibrations of
her belly pressing into his groin overcame any pain her slight
weight caused his leg.
He settled his hands on the small, firm mounds of her
backside. Squeezing and caressing them, he pressed her
deeper onto him. She moaned and wiggled her hips. Their
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kisses went from hot, merging tongue lashes to soft pecks
and back again several times. Heat swirled and his blood
pounded, growing excited and begging for the ultimate.
A small voice shattered their connection.
"They're kissing again," August said.
"Oh, yeah? Well the rest of us need some sleep," Bug
declared.
August's words had made Summer giggle, but Bug's had
her leaping from Snake's arms so fast he couldn't stop her.
He did manage to grab her hand before she flew to the door.
"Give us a couple more minutes, will ya, Bug?" Snake asked,
increasing the hold he had on her wrist.
"All right, but someday, you're gonna owe me. Big."
"I already do," Snake said, never taking his eyes off
Summer. "Sit down."
She shook her head. The way her chest heaved with each
breath told him she was as heated as he.
"I won't kiss you, I promise. There's something I have to
ask you."
Wary, she looked him up and down.
He chuckled. "I take it back. I can't promise I won't kiss
you, but I do need to ask you something. Sit down."
She sat. "What is it?"
"I've been planning on building a house for sometime but
kept putting it off because I figure one day soon Bug will be
going off in search of oil seeps and that'll leave Ma alone. I
know she can take care of herself, but I never liked the idea
of her being out here all by herself. Now that the house burnt,
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I'm thinking about building one that's large enough for all of
us, you, me, August and September, and Ma."
Her stunned looked caused more than a touch of
apprehension. He squirmed. "I know living with your mother-
in-law may not be ideal. But if you agree to it, I'll talk to the
other boys and maybe once in a while she can go stay with
them for a bit."
She shook her head.
He nodded. "I understand."
"No," she said with quivering lips. "No, you don't
understand."
"I do," he assured. "And I'm sorry. It was foolish of me to
ask."
Tears trickled from her eyes. She pressed a hand against
his mouth when he attempted to speak. "No," she said. "You
don't understand. It wasn't foolish of you to ask. It was
admirable. It's just that I'm the last person who should have
a say in who lives where."
He pulled her hand from his lips, kissing the fingers as he
wrapped them in his grasp. "The last person? How do you
figure that?"
"It's your house. It's Ma's house. It's not mine."
"Yes, it is. Well, it's ours. Yours and mine and August's and
September's and yes, Ma's—if that's all right with you. Kid
and Bug think it's a good plan, and they think Hog and
Skeeter will be happy knowing Ma won't be alone once Bug
leaves."
"I think it's a wonderful plan."
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He let out a long sigh. "Then it's all right? You won't mind
having your mother-in-law living with you?"
Tears fell from her eyes faster than he could wipe them
away. This is exactly what scared him—how a woman could
confuse a man to the point he didn't know if he was going
north, south, east, or west.
"Honey," he said, somewhat exasperated, "I don't know if
you're crying 'cause you want Ma to live with us or if you
don't want her to live with us." He quit trying to wipe away
the tears and cupped her cheeks. "Can you help me out
here?"
She sniffled and rubbed her nose with the back of one
hand. "I'd love to live with you and Ma in your new house."
Her sniffles turned into sobs again, making her voice squeak
and crack. "And I'm sure August and September would love
it, too. But are you sure you want us?"
"Want you? Yes, I want you. I want you to live with me. All
of you, forever and ever." He kissed her forehead. "It's
settled then. I'll tell Kid to bring over some house plans for us
to look at."
"Are you still kissing?" August asked from the other side of
the tent flap.
"No," Snake answered. "Summer will be out in a minute,
buddy."
She rose and he couldn't stop her from slipping off the
bed. He smiled when she did stop, halfway across the tent,
and turned around to face him. The seriousness of her face
made his grin fade. "What is it?" he asked, wondering if she'd
already changed her mind.
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"What if...what if there's something about me or August or
September that you can't live with? What then?"
For some odd and unexplainable reason, the image of his
father's watch formed in his mind. He could almost hear the
faint tick-tock it made. "Has Kid said something to you?"
She shook her head. "Kid? Like what?"
"Nothing," he said. If Kid had said something, she wouldn't
have to ask what it was about. "You worry too much. Go on
now so August and Bug can come in and get some sleep." He
smiled, and if he didn't think he'd fall flat on his face, he'd
have walked across the tent for one more kiss. "You get some
rest, too."
Despite the fear wrenching inside her, Summer nodded
and turned to flip open the tent flap. She patted August's
head as he ducked under her arm in his rush inside. He'd
been ecstatic to hear about the boys and girls tents. It was
surprising he'd held out as long as he had to claim his spot
beside Snake and Bug.
The cool night air, though fresh, still held the acrid scent of
fire. She didn't go to the tent she'd share with Ma and
September, instead Summer made her way to the water tub.
The dress she wore was one Jessie had brought, along with
things for everyone else, including the children. She had no
idea how or where the woman had found things to fit
everyone. At the time, she'd been too thankful to ask.
The outfit wasn't overly dirty, but beneath it, she felt as
soot covered as the ground. After laying the dress beside her
borrowed boots on a nearby bench, she climbed into the tub
and started to scrub. It wasn't until her skin started to burn
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that she realized she'd never be clean. For the dirt and grime
wasn't on the outside. It was on the inside where July Austin's
actions left her too filthy to live.
With a force that left her gasping, tears burst from her
eyes. She rarely cried, years ago she learned tears didn't
help. The force of the gush was so hard she wondered where
all the water came from.
"You doing all right in there?" Ma's voice sounded from
behind.
Summer sucked in a breath. "Y-yes." She attempted to
disguise her tears by splashing her face.
"Crying's not a sign of weakness, Summer. It's a sign of
strength. It's the body's way of getting rid of old, no-good
feelings and giving room for new, healthy ones to grow." Ma
stared off in the distance, as if contemplating what she said.
"Sometimes we have tears of joy, like I did when I saw my
stitching machine. But you know what? Those tears do the
same thing. They release happiness so there's room for more
happiness to grow." The woman patted the side of the tub. "I
brought you a towel. But take your time. I'll leave a lamp on
for you."