Indiana Wild (Spirit Pass Book 1) (7 page)

Maikoda stared hard at Jonathan before asking.
“You will protect her?”

“
Yes, with my life if necessary. She is different. She is mine,” came the soft, firm reply.

Maikoda was quiet for a moment before he nodded. He understood what the white man was saying. He could hear the confusion in his voice at the strong feelings the female brought out in him. Maikoda understood because he had felt the same way when he had looked at the image of Aleaha in the magic silver box. Turning to look toward the mountains, he decided he would travel to the other side of the mountain to find this Aleaha. He needed to return to his tribe first to relay
the information he had discovered first but as soon as it was delivered, he would travel through the Pass little sister told him about.

Jonathan turned to remove the saddle from his horse wondering if the Indian would tell him what he and Indy had been doing in the cabin. He decided he would go ahead and ask but when he turned around he found he was alone.
That damn Indian was quiet when he moved,
Jonathan thought staring into the dark. It was a good thing they were on the same side.

*.*.*

Indy was dead tired from all the work she had done over the last two days. Even so, she was determined to take a bath to wash the dirt and sweat off of her tired body. Besides she decided, the warm water would help her sleep better. Closing the wood shutters on the inside, she removed her clothes. Maikoda had checked out the wood stove for her while she made dinner to make sure it was safe to use and built a small fire in it to take the chill out of the cabin. Now the cabin was nice and warm. Indy had found a big pot and an old wash tub big enough to use as a bathtub behind the lean-to. She filled the big pot with water heating up enough to fill the big wash tub. It would be a tight fit but it was better than nothing. She left the pot on the stove to heat more water for in the morning. It would be nice to have warm instead of frigid water to wash her face in the morning. Now she had enough to bathe and to wash her clothes out. She would get up early in the morning and pack up what was left of her supplies. She was going to have to make some hard decisions soon. She was going to have to do some hunting and foraging or head back to Sam’s ranch to restock sooner than she wanted or go hungry. She had only been gone a couple of months and knew as stubborn as Hayden was he wouldn’t have given up yet so it would be dangerous to head to Sam’s place. One thing Indy knew for certain about Hayden, he did not like to lose - to anyone.

Standing naked in front of the wood stove, Indy poured the hot water into the big tub adding just enough cold water to take the edge off. Once the tub was filled half way, she stepped into it and sank down pulling her knees up so she could slide down until the water lapped around her neck. Pulling her hair up and knotting it on top of her head she laid her head back against the rim of the tub.

God, it felt so good,
she thought tiredly. If she would have had the strength to be mad at her brothers at that moment she would have castrated all three of them for driving her away from her nice cozy bedroom and big bathtub.

A tear course
d down her cheek as she realized she would never be allowed to walk through the big ranch house which had been her home. She was technically homeless. Laying her arm across her eyes, she tried not to cry but the tears kept coming. She hadn’t had a chance to really grieve for her grandfather or the loss of her home. Now, in the middle of an old cabin, in a pint-size bathtub she broke down crying until she could barely breathe.

*.*.*

Jonathan had finished eating the food Wally had packed for him and cleaned up the mess. It was going to be a cold night from the clarity of the night sky. The stars were brilliant. Deciding to take a quick peek in on Indy to make sure she was alright before he bundled up for the night in his bedroll, Jonathan moved quietly up to the cabin. Looking through the cracks in the window Jonathan’s breath rushed out of him as he saw her standing nude in front of the wood burning stove. He knew he should move away but he couldn’t have torn himself away from the view if his life depended on it. His gaze moved over her figure taking in the curves of her hips and round ass, her narrow waist, and her long legs. He fisted his hand into his mouth to keep the groan from escaping as she turned to pour water into a huge wash tub. He watched as her full breasts swayed and her nipples peaked in the cooler air of the cabin. As his gaze moved lower he was stunned to see she was bare between her legs. He had never seen a woman without hair between her legs before and the sight that greeted him had him clutching his growing cock at the idea of how sweet and soft she would taste.

Unable to stand the pressure in his pants any longer, Jonathan removed the glove on his right hand and fumbled with the fastening holding his pants closed so he could release his throbbing cock
into the cold air in a hope it would help him relieve the pressure. He pulled his cock out and into his hand feeling the straining flesh. His cock didn’t seem to realize it was cold outside as it continued to grow and pulse as Jonathan watched Indy step into the tub and sink down. He stroked his cock back and forth as Indy raised her arms to pile her hair onto the top of her head. The movement caused her breasts to rise up and Jonathan could see her big, dark rose-colored nipples pointing at him as if begging for his attention. Jonathan pumped his cock faster, squeezing it harder as his breathing increased as he felt the pressure build up. Stumbling backwards, he moved to the side of the cabin groaning out softly as he felt the explosion of his climax shooting out into the dirt. Grabbing the bandana from around his neck, he pulled it loose and used it to clean himself. Never in his life had he ever lost control like that - never. He closed his pants with a shaking hand. If just seeing her nude did this to him he couldn’t imagine what would happen when he finally made love to her. Afraid to see her again and ashamed of himself for watching her without her being aware of it, Jonathan moved back to his lonely, cold spot under the trees. Tonight was going to be one of the longest and loneliest nights of his life.

It was amazing what a good cry could do to help you put things in perspective. Indy had cried her eyes out last night in the big old wash tub. Then, she had pulled herself back together. She had gotten ready for bed, washed her dirty clothes and hung them in front of the wood stove to dry, poured the water out the back door and gone to bed to sleep like the dead. Unfortunately, that also meant she was running late this morning. She had been startled when Jonathan had banged on the door to the cabin at first light. Mumbling expletives under her breath about people who got up too damn early in the morning, Indy had opened the door to see a very rumpled and cold looking Jonathan standing on her doorstep.

“
What the hell do you want?” Indy muttered darkly, pushing her long hair out of her eyes. Chester and Tweed jumped around behind her trying to get past so they could go outside and do their business. Indy stood to one side and motioned for them go. She watched as they tore off down the steps and into the woods sniffing and marking everything in sight. She rolled her eyes thinking males were the same no matter what species they were. “Well, did you want something or did you just want to piss me off first thing this morning?” She asked grumpily leaning one slender hip against the doorframe.

Jonathan looked at Indy trying to get his brain to function. She looked so damn beautiful standing there in a long flannel shirt that went almost to her knees and a thick pair of socks with her hair all disheveled as it flowed down her back in wild abandon. He was remembering what she looked like naked last night and wanted to groan in frustration. He wanted more than anything in the world to slide his hand up under her nightshirt to see if she was wearing anything underneath it. He had a feeling all he would feel would be smooth, silky skin.

Trying to focus, Jonathan cleared his throat which had suddenly gone dry. “I told you to be ready to go first thing this morning. I’m taking you to Meeteetse to find out who sent you,” he said gruffly.

Indy’s eyes flashed at the mention of him trying to find Hayden.
“And I told you when hell freezes over, if I remember correctly. I’ll be up to the ranch house in an hour to collect my pay,” she bit out glaring at him with daggers in her eyes.

Indy was furious he would wake her up just to insult her by telling her he was taking her back to her greedy brothers! She let out a loud whistle for the dogs to come back in. She waited silently fuming until they charged by her before stepping back into the cabin and slamming the door in
his face.

She couldn’t believe he had the nerve to wake her up at the crack of dawn to tell her he was taking her back. That was
so
not going to happen. Once she collected her pay she was heading back to the mountains. She would lose herself so far in them she wouldn’t even know where the hell she was. Moving over to the warm pan of water, she dished some into the washbowl and washed her face. She quickly changed into her jeans and a flannel shirt before braiding her hair. She grabbed one of the breakfast bars she had to give her enough energy to get through to lunch. She was almost done packing when another knock sounded at the door.

Growling under her breath, she swung the door to the cabin open yelling in frustration.
“What the hell is your problem? I told you I would be up to the damn ranch house in an hour…” Her voice faded as she saw Jake standing before her, not Jonathan.

“
Oh, Jake. Sorry about that. Come on in,” Indy muttered, moving aside so Jake could enter.

“
Indy? You’re the naked woman?” Jake stuttered out turning red.

“
Naked woman?” Indy looked at Jake for a moment before shaking her head. “Forget it. I really don’t think I want to know. Did you need something? As you can tell I’m a little busy right now,” she said waving her hand toward the table where she had her saddlebags, sleeping bag, and other items in various stages of packing.

Jake looked puzzled as he watched Indy pack her stuff up. 
“You going somewhere?”

“
Yeah. The boss man fired me so I turned around and quit. Guess he doesn’t like the idea of a woman working as a cowpuncher on his ranch. That’s okay. I have other places I can go to anyway,” she said with a dismissive shrug.

“
Where you going to go? You heading to Meeteetse?” Jake asked as Indy pushed more items into one of her saddlebags.

She shook her head trying to decide how much she wanted to tell her old friend.
“No, I figured I’d head back toward the mountains. I know them pretty well. That’s where I was living before I came across you and Cal. With winter moving on it will be a little easier. I can build a primitive shelter and hunt for food for the boys and me.” Indy figured telling Jake she was headed to the mountains couldn’t be too dangerous considering there were a lot of mountains around. She didn’t have to tell him anything specific.

“
The mountains? That’s damn dangerous even for a man. You could get yourself killed up there,” Jake said looking at Indy with a puzzled look on his face. “You still afraid those men are looking for you?” He asked shrewdly.

Indy looked up sharply
, surprised that he remembered. “I know they are. One of them will never give up, not as long as I’m alive,” she replied bitterly, thinking of the look Hayden had given her before she stormed out of the den.

“
Why would they want you dead?” Jake asked looking intently at Indy.

He couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt her. Even when he thought Indy was a boy he couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt someone so nice. A dark thought crossed his mind at the same time as Indy spoke the words out loud that he was thinking.

“They don’t want me dead necessarily although what they want to do to me would kill me eventually,” Indy said shortly thinking about how her older brother wanted to force her to give up her animals and move her to a big city.

Shaking her head, she looked at Jake with tears in her eyes at the thought of being forced to live the kind of life Hayden wanted her to. She knew the first thing he would do is sell her off to the highest bidder that would benefit him both financially and politically. That was probably one of the reasons he was trying to force her to move. He never did anything unless it benefited him in some way. Indy couldn’t hide the shudder that coursed through her at the thought of being some uptight lawyer’s trophy wife.

“I can’t let them catch me, Jake. It would be a fate worse than death. I’d be better off dead than living the life they would force on me,” Indy whispered brushing away a stray tear that had escaped with trembling fingers.

Jake just stared at Indy as he took in what she was saying. He could tell that she had been hurt by the men chasing her and she was damned scared at the idea of them catching her. He had to let the boss men know she was in danger. She had saved his and Cal’s life that day on the range and he would do anything he could to protect her.

Jake stayed for a little while longer before telling Indy he had to get back to work. He joked with her about how he had wanted to come meet the woman Indy had working on the roof of the cabin. They laughed about the confusion it had caused when it turned out to be her instead. Jake blushed a bright red when Indy gave him a big hug and kissed one of his wrinkled cheeks, telling him she had really enjoyed meeting him and would miss him when she was gone. Waving goodbye to him, she turned and finished packing everything before moving outside to get the horses ready for the long journey she had to make.

*.*.*

Jake made it back to the ranch house in record time. He had to talk to the boss men. He had to tell them about the danger to Indy before they decided to do something stupid like turn her over to the men looking for her. Seeing Jonathan getting the buckboard ready, he walked over to him and stood waiting for him to finish talking to one of the other ranch hands.

“
Boss, can I talk to you a minute?” Jake asked, nervously twisting his hat around in his hands. “Alone,” he added gruffly looking at Carl who was standing nearby.

Jonathan nodded tiredly. He jerked his head, motioning for Carl to step away. He waited until Carl had moved back toward the barn before he glanced at Jake.

“What do you want, Jake?” Jonathan asked, exhausted from his sleepless night. He was not in the mood to deal with ranch problems right now but Jacob had ridden out to meet up with Ed so he figured he didn’t have much choice.

“
I went to see Indy this morning,” Jake began haltingly when Jonathan swung around staring at him with narrowed eyes. Jake cleared his throat. “I thought to ask about the woman who was helping him. I was a might surprised when I discovered they were one and the same,” he added with a wry grin.

Jonathan’s eyes turned even colder at the mention of Jake seeing Indy in so little clothing.
“I’m taking Indy to Meeteetse this morning to find out who sent her out here.” He figured he didn’t have to add he was marrying her while he was there. The men on the ranch would find out soon enough.

“
I don’t think that is such a good idea, boss,” Jake said softly looking at the dark expression on Jonathan’s face.

“
And why is that?” Jonathan asked in a suspicious voice.

“
She’s in danger. She don’t want to say anything but she let slip three men are looking for her. She was crying when she talked about them catching her. Said that what they wanted to do to her was a fate worse than death. Boss, she’s mighty scared of ‘em. She said she would rather be dead than let them get a hold of her.” Jake rushed through what he had learned from his earlier conversation with Indy.

He was getting more nervous as he spoke due to the cold, hard look that came into Jonathan’s eyes when he mentioned Indy being in danger. He knew the bosses were good men and wouldn’t let nothing happen to a defenseless woman.

“Damn it, why didn’t she say anything to me?” Jonathan bit out savagely.

“
She told me a little the day I met her. I asked her if she was wanted by the law. She said maybe but she didn’t lie, steal, or hurt other people. She had been living in the mountains hiding from the men. She says she is going back there,” Jake responded.

Jonathan stared down the road towards the cabin feeling frustrated as hell. She should have told him she was in danger. He and Jacob would do everything in their power to protect her. Had those men treated her so badly she felt like she couldn’t trust them? What had th
ose men done to her that would drive a fragile, beautiful woman like her to live in the mountains all alone? Hell, he would have a hell of a time surviving up there and he was a man. How had she done it with just two dogs and two horses? He admired her courage but it didn’t change his plans on marrying her. If anything, it made him even more determined as she would have the protection of him, his brother, and all the ranch hands.

Making a quick decision, he called Carl over. He spoke rapidly, giving Carl his orders and told him to make haste. He watched Carl nod in understanding before the cowpuncher quickly climbed up onto the buckboard and swiftly pulled away. Staring thoughtfully at the departing
wagon, Jonathan decided he had his work cut out for him. With luck, he would be enjoying the life of a married man in a few short hours and Indy would be safe from whoever was after her.

*.*.*

Indy finished packing her remaining supplies on Kahlua and saddled Midnight. She double-checked to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything. She also made sure the fire was totally out of the wood stove before reluctantly shutting the door to the cabin. It was hard to believe she had only stayed there two days. It didn’t even look like the same place.

Settling her hat on her head, she whistled for Chester and Tweed. Mounting Midnight, she gave the order for the dogs to move out ahead of her. She would collect her paycheck, though she didn’t have a clue as to when or where she would
cash it, and head for the mountains. If she was smart, she would just head for the mountains and skip the paycheck. She would have if she didn’t have the overwhelming need to see Jonathan Tucker one last time, not that she would ever admit that to him. The kiss they had shared yesterday had her thinking things she had never thought before. Things like, how sweet he would taste elsewhere? Things like what she would do if she ever got him naked. Groaning, she tried to push her errant thoughts away. She had read enough romance novels and had even watched a couple of soft porn movies with Sam’s girls one night to see what could happen between a man and a woman. She blushed when she thought of what she would like to do to Jonathan if it had been him and her naked together.

Dreams, that is all they would ever be,
Indy thought bleakly,
nothing but dreams.

Indy was surprised to see Jake come out of the barn when she reached the ranch house. She had thought he meant he had work elsewhere on the ranch. She really was going to miss the old cowpuncher. In some ways, he reminded her a lot of her granddad.

“Indy, boss man said for you to go to his study to get your pay. It’s the last door down the hall on your left. I’ll take the horses and dogs for you while you’re in there,” Jake said before calling out to Chester and Tweed.

Indy was surprised but figured maybe Jonathan didn’t want the dogs in the house. Some people didn’t like having animals in their home. It surprised her because she didn’t get the feeling Jonathan would mind all that much. Taking the steps two at a time up to the front porch, Indy admired the beauty and size of the house. Knocking loudly on the front door, she opened it enough so she could poke her head inside and called out. A little
Asian man came scurrying out of the kitchen. He was talking so fast Indy wasn’t sure what he was saying.