Oklahoma kiss (42 page)

      
"A-are you sure you'll be all right?"

      
Coy sighed with exasperation. "Blair, I've been telling you all day long, I feel fine. I'll admit, I am sore as hell, and I'm sure I will be for another week or two, but I certainly don't need an around-the-clock nursemaid. Just as we don't need Jake sitting out in the lobby standing guard. Absolutely, Warren is getting worse than an old mother hen. Now, go on, before he leaves again."

      
Blair moistened her lips and smoothed her skirt over her hips. "All right, but if you need me. . . ."

      
He laughed. "I won't. Now get out of here."

      
Adam removed his shirt and boots, then filled the enameled basin from the pitcher of water and washed himself before lighting a cheroot and lying back down on the bed. The need to use the outbuilding in the back of the hotel had awoke him, but when he went outside, it surprised him that the night was still so early. It could not have been past seven—eight o'clock at the most. As tired as he was and as much sleep as he had lost, he figured he would have slept longer.

      
Adam debated whether to stub out the cheroot and try to go back to sleep, or to get dressed, find Matthew and relieve him for a while. He wanted to talk with Seth, too, but felt it would be too risky for them to be seen together while he was attempting to establish his cover. If Seth discovered anything significant, Adam was confident he would contact him as soon as possible. Then, there was Blair and that damned quarrel they'd had. He should try. . . .

      
Suddenly, Adam swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat up. Rubbing both hands over his face, he sighed heavily. "
Damn it, I don't need to clutter my head with thoughts about her right now! I have more important things. . . ."
His voice broke off, he knew that was a lie, so why waste his breath by saying it aloud?

      
Adam knew he had reached the point where their relationship had to be resolved. He could deal with the normal problems that faced them, even the argument they'd had. What disturbed him so much —even though it had probably been out of spite and anger—she had turned to Tom Bastrop. He was not a fool, he'd noticed how Tom Bastrop looked at Blair every time he saw her. Hell, even a blind man could see he was attracted to her. And, if his suspicions about Tom were true, Blair could unwittingly be involving herself in serious trouble.

      
Adam realized if he tried to warn her about Bastrop now, in all likelihood she would think he was just jealous. He'd had enough experience with women to know how they sometimes tried to play one man against another. That wasn't very complimentary to Blair personally, but she was female through and through, and all women were capable of using those instincts. In his opinion, they were as natural as breathing.

      
Hearing a knock at his door, Adam pulled his thoughts from Blair. Thinking that it was probably Matthew, he padded barefoot across the floor without putting his shirt on and left the two top buttons of his trousers unfastened. Suddenly remembering there was a price on his head, he felt like a fool for being so careless. Annoyed with himself, he hurriedly reached for the gun that was hanging on the bedpost at the head of the bed. When he opened the door, it was through a mere crack that he peered into the hall.

      
"Blair?" he breathed hoarsely. She was the last person he expected.

      
Even with Coy's encouragement, it had been no easy accomplishment for her to push aside her anxiety and knock on Adam's door, since she had no idea what his reaction would be to seeing her. Blair's arms fell abruptly to her sides and dread suddenly descended over her like a steel weight. Nervously, she moistened her dry lips and tried to swallow, but her mouth felt like dust had settled in it. "Adam, may I come in?"

      
Instead of answering, he carefully released the hammer on his gun and opened the door for her to enter.

      
Even though there was no lamp lit in the room, there was enough light filtering through the curtain for her to see the gun. "Goodness," she tried to laugh, but it sounded more like a strangled cough. "I didn't know I would receive that kind of welcome."

      
"Just being cautious, I had no idea who was knocking on my door." Shocked at the turbulence of his own feelings, Adam stepped back into the shadows so that she could not see the expression on his face. Allowing himself time to regain his composure, Adam pulled the shade before lighting the lamp, then turned toward her and shrugged indifferently. "You'll have to excuse my appearance; like I said, I didn't know who was at my door."

      
His gray eyes narrowed speculatively, noting her obvious discomfort. Yet, as much as he loved her and wanted to take her in his arms, Adam knew he would be a fool to show any unnecessary emotion until he learned the actual reason behind her visit. He refused to be manipulated like a puppet, not even for the woman he loved.

      
Blair made a quick involuntary appraisal of his naked chest and immediately felt blood coursing through her veins like an awakened stream just after the spring thaw. But, she was suddenly frightened by his features; they seemed to have been chiseled from granite. Their relationship was so fragile, had she pushed him too far?

      
"Did you have anything in particular on your mind?" he asked in a low, tentative voice.

      
Drawing strength from some unknown inner source, she slowly began, "Adam, yesterday at your office. . . ."

      
"Yesterday? Don't you mean this morning?" his deep voice brimmed with unmistakable sarcasm. He thought she was deliberately trying to mislead him.

      
"No, it was yesterday when I went to your office."

      
Blair sounded so sincere, he frowned in confusion. "What day is this?"

      
"Monday."

      
"Then, yesterday was Sunday," he said slowly as if trying to sort through the jumble in his mind.

      
"yes, that is when I went to your office," she repeated.

      
Adam shook his head then scratched it, feeling like a complete dolt. "Then ... I must have slept all the way through yesterday and today. I must have been more exhausted than I thought." His eyes widened suddenly and he reached for his boots. "There's no telling what has happened to Matthew."

      
"Wait." She reached out and lightly touched his arm. "Your brother came by a short while ago and looked in on you. Apparently he had learned that we were . . . acquainted, so he stopped by and asked us to tell you if we heard you stirring about, that he evicted the drunk from the cell late yesterday afternoon and would be sleeping on one of the cots. He also said everything was under control and the town was quiet — unusually quiet; so he asked around and decided it was probably due to the fact the soldiers will be here to open the land tomorrow."

      
"I see." Disappointment mixed with his feeling of relief. Adam was glad there had been no trouble, but it also explained the reason for Blair's presence. "It's hard to believe I slept that long . . . but thanks for delivering the messages."

      
"You're welcome ... but that is not the only reason I am here." She lowered her eyes, then raised them to stare with longing at him. "I was so afraid we would leave before I had a chance to talk to you."

      
"You're leaving?"

      
"Yes, we are returning home in the morning."

      
"What about Coy?"

      
"He is much better—if you could hear him complaining, I'm sure you would agree with me. At any rate, I believe he is up to making the trip. And ... if I may add, I'm grateful because I don't want to be here tomorrow when they open the land. However, I think you might find it surprising to learn that Warren plans to take part in it. He left for the ranch before sundown to get his fastest horse. He says that he will be on the front line and the instant the signal shots are fired. . . ."

      
"Why is he taking part in the land opening?" This certainly didn't sound like the Warren he knew.

      
"He wants to claim a certain portion just beyond the river; in fact, the river is a natural boundary separating our land. He says he wants to put as much distance between us and them as

      
possible."

      
Although Adam found this information to be interesting, he was more engrossed with Blair. He realized there was something else she wanted to say, but had been unable to because of his interruptions. If he didn't give her an opening to speak her piece, she would probably leave and he might never know what she wanted to tell him. "I believe you said you wanted to talk to me. Was it anything in particular, or have you already said it?" He sauntered over to the bed, sat down, and looked up at her expectantly.

      
Damn! Why did he have to sound so cold and abrupt?

      
Blair was dismayed to feel her courage fleeing when Adam stared at her with such a burning look. She could feel the explosive tension emanating from him. Then suddenly, a ray of hope rushed through her when she remembered how Warren always wanted to tower over someone when he wanted to be intimidating. Even though Adam continued to stare at her, she felt it was an encouraging sign that he had sat down.

      
Depicting an ease she definitely did not feel, Blair tilted her chin upward in a gesture of pride. But her voice betrayed her feeling of insecurity. "I had my courage all built up, now I have it to do all over again."

      
"Why do you need courage?" he asked, deliberately baiting her.

      
"To tell you I am sorry for the way I behaved yesterday," she murmured softly. "And I need courage because I probably hate to apologize as badly as a man does. But I’m not apologizing because I was angry," she rushed to say. "Those terrifying hours I spent not knowing whether you were dead or alive were the most miserable hours I ever lived through. So whatever fury I felt, I believe was justified. Yet, you apologized for not sending word to me, and, I should have accepted it and left it at that. My interference with your duty as deputy marshal is quite a different matter, though. That is what I am apologizing for, and I think I should also tell you . . . that it will never happen again."

      
"Blair . . . ?"

      
"No, please, let me finish ... or I may not ever be able to say it. I did a lot of soul-searching today. I kept remembering how I felt when you went out to face those men and I wondered if I could live my life with that kind of fear. But one thing I know for certain: if a man loves his work—his profession, regardless what it is —no woman has the right to interfere or to ask him to give it up ... no matter how much she loves him, or how much it frightens her." Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. "Adam, I don't know what the future holds for us, or even if we have a future together. But I do know one day of happiness with you is more important to me than spending a lifetime with a man I did not love. I love you Adam! I love you so much!"

      
A wide, happy smile spread quickly across Adam's face. He pulled her roughly, almost violently to him, his hand like an iron grip on her wrist. Then his arms encircled her, one hand in the small of her back. "Sweetheart, you'll never know how much I wanted to hear you say those words!"

      
Chapter 25

      
Adam's arms wrapped around Blair tightly as though half-afraid she was but a dream that would slip away like the elusive will-o'-the-wisp.

      
But when the full implication of her words soaked through to his mind, his heart soared; she loved no one else but him and any thoughts of other men be damned!

      
Neither was prepared for the overwhelming force that struck without warning.

      
Slowly, he twisted her countenance up to his. "What have you done to me, sweetheart? Those medicines you know so much about, is there also one you’ve made into a magic love potion?" he asked before his hands tightened in her ebony cascade of tresses, and his mouth found hers with a fiery possessiveness he had not thought possible. His burning kiss clearly stated what he wanted.

      
Having had no prior thoughts about Adam making love to her, Blair moaned with slight protest as his tongue plundered the softness of her mouth. Yet, in an disconcerting short amount of time, she was returning his kiss with an answering fervor that only he could create within her.

      
Adam maneuvered so that he was on his back on the bed, pulling Blair with him. But his ardor cooled considerably when she instantly tensed in his arms.

      
"What's wrong, sweetheart? Don't you want to make love?"

      
"Y-yes, but ... the bed ... it squeaks! There are people in the other rooms and I don't want them to hear us . . . maybe even laugh. That would make it seem. . . ."

      
Already breathing more heavily than normal, Adam sat up on the side of the bed and sighed. Suddenly, his mouth widened in a naughty grin. "Hell, sweetheart, that's no problem." Extending his arm, he helped Blair to her feet then vigorously hefted the mattress onto the floor. "See, I told you . . . now if we can only get you out of these clothes," he murmured huskily as he began unfastening the buttons on her dress.

      
Moments later, he crushed her in his arms and his lips sought hers, holding her mouth a willing hostage.