Silver Nights With You (Love in the Sierras Book 1) (15 page)

Tears rushed to her eyes as she gulped the fresh night air. She spied the carriage down the road and headed toward it at a brisk pace. A hand gripped her elbow and she jerked away with a yelp, feeling only mild relief when she saw it was David. When he saw her tears, his eyes softened sympathetically.

“I’m sorry, Lila,” he said, pulling her into his embrace for comfort. She was so overwrought that she went into his arms. “I thought you would be excited to play cards in a real saloon.”

“Well, I’m not,” she sniffled against his chest. “I want to go back to the boarding house.”

“All right, but I’ve got to play that hand. They’ve already dealt me in.”

“Then you stay. I’ll take the carriage and send it back for you.”

“Uh…”

When he didn’t continue, Lila looked up from where her head rested on his chest. He chewed nervously on his bottom lip and avoided her gaze.

“What?” she asked.

“I just spent the last of my money in there. I don’t have any to pay the driver to take you back."

"What do you mean you spent the last of your money? You have
no
money?"

"Not with me," he answered hastily. "The banks aren't open now. I'm out of all I had on me. If you wait a little bit I’m sure I’ll win it back and then we can go home together.”

Lila looked past his shoulder back into the saloon and shuddered at the thought. “I’m not going back in there. I will just walk without you.”

“I can’t let you do that.”

“Well, David,” her voice was wound with irritation. “You can’t really stop me. So, you either walk with me now or go back in there. Make your choice.”

“Lila,” he begged. “I’ve put a lot of cash down on that game. If I walk away right now, it’s lost for sure. I’ll have nothing.”

She stared up at him, hurt and disappointment filling her heart that this was even a dilemma to him. "And you call yourself a gentleman? I'll walk the distance myself, Mr. Gardner. Our courtship is over!"

“Lila, please. I can’t leave all of that cash in there.”

He stayed quiet, waiting for her to concede to his will, and she absolutely refused to do it. She took a step away, stoically wiped the tears from her face, sucked in a deep breath and walked away from him and the bright lights of Virginia City, certain he would come after her.

She kept walking until the night fell darker and the shadows bled into one another. Anonymous scrapes and twitches snapped from the shrubs on her right and she leapt into the center of the road. There she stood, waiting in the blackness, straining to hear his footsteps, but she heard nothing. He wasn’t coming. Her head shook in disbelief and sadness. For a moment, she considered turning back, but guessed to be halfway between the two towns. It would take as long to go back as it would to go forward. She tried to slow her beating pulse and carried on at a much brisker pace.

The sounds of the city were completely gone, lending the air to cricket creaks and the sand-slipped scurrying of night creatures. An eerie tingling worked its way up her spine to lift the tiny hairs on her neck. She shut her eyes, fighting against her fear, and began to scold herself aloud.

“Stupid, stupid girl! What are you doing out here? You’re going to get yourself killed! You should have just taken the damn carriage home and had father pay the fare. Now, you not only look the fool but you actually are one.”

Just then, a high-pitched moan howled through the night air, and it was too close for comfort. She lifted her skirts and took off running down the road. More howls answered the first, followed by a series of yips, and she ran faster. She could see the boarding house and the rest of Gold Hill as she crested the road but she did not slow down.

Her legs cramped but she pushed them harder and faster. The porch steps were just feet away as she was stopped dead in her tracks by the open arms of a moving shadow. She lost her breath as she came up hard against his torso. Her mouth fell open to scream but she looked up and saw that it was Morgan, and she collapsed into his arms with a relieved cry.

“Whoa! What happened?” he asked with worry. Her body instantly set to shaking and he rubbed his hands up and down her back to soothe her. “Are you all right? Who are you running from? Where’s David? Did something happen?”

“He’s fine,” she said, fighting to control the tremble in her voice. “I’m fine. We’re both fine. There were wolves out there!” She swallowed a gulp of air. “I could hear them howling. I think they were chasing me.”

“There are no wolves out there,” he said with confidence. “We don’t have wolves in the desert, only farther up in the mountains.”

“Oh, thank God,” she breathed. “What were they then?”

“Coyotes.”

“What are coyotes?” she asked through a pant of air.

“They’re like…small wolves,” he answered with a teasing grin, and she huffed, slapping him lightly against the chest. “They weren’t chasing you, though. I heard them, too, and they were far off. They hunt in packs at night, usually small animals like hares or foxes, although they have been known to take down a person once or twice. Generally, they are easily frightened off.”

“Oh,” she said, having finally caught her breath. Knowing that there had been no more threat than her own imagination, she felt silly and relaxed against his chest. His body tensed beneath her, and he moved his hands to her arms and set her away from him.

"Morgan, you have to let me explain…" she begged as he walked away from her. He spun around.

“Good idea," he snapped. "Why don't you start by telling me why you're on your own and walking?”

She couldn't tell him the truth. The memory of David's cold, dark eyes promising Morgan pain for being close to her made her panic. David didn't know that the man he despised was the man she was running to. If she told Morgan what just happened he would confront David, and it could trigger a violent, potentially deadly, reaction from her former suitor. Her smile was weak, but she hoped it was convincing.

“The night air was so refreshing and beautiful that I decided to walk back instead of drive. David wanted to stay at The Silver Queen. It's as simple as that.”

"He took you to The Silver Queen?" Morgan’s voice took on a sharper edge. He threw the remnant of his cigar on the ground and stomped up the road toward Virginia City. Lila ran to place herself in front of him.

"It doesn't matter. As you see I elected not to stay."

"Did he force himself on you?"

“Of course not!” she frowned at the insinuation. “Why are you always so quick to condemn David whenever you find me alone? I am not in constant need of your protection. Would you react this way if it was Ellie coming down that road instead of me? There are plenty of independent women in this town.”

He looked down at her, his eyes dark and unyielding. “Yes, there are, and I respect every one of them. Independence I admire. It's stupidity I abhor."

Her mouth fell open. "Well, I…that is the most insulting thing anyone has ever said to me."

"That's because you surround yourself with shallow peacocks like David who fill your head with false flattery. And I wouldn't react this way to Ellie because she would never travel down this road on her own at night unless it was absolutely necessary."

"It
was
absolutely necessary!" she shouted without thinking, and he studied her face.

"In what way?"

“David…was in the middle of bucking the…horse…or something,” she said with a wave. “He
couldn’t
leave, and I was anxious to return so I could speak with you. Although I admit that you're making me question myself with your ungentlemanly behavior tonight.”

"Ha!" he laughed. "If David Gardner is the measure of a gentleman in your eyes then I'll take that as a compliment. I can't believe that you, of all people, would not find fault with him abandoning you for a turn at cards. You should find that far more insulting than anything I've said to you." Morgan threw his hands in the air and shrugged. "But he wears a nice suit and he can’t open his mouth but to compliment you, so he must be a gentleman, right? I thought you cared about substance more than that. I thought you
had
more substance than that." His eyes darted down to the neckline of her dress. "And I thought you had more class than to go around pleading for male attention."

“I beg your pardon?” The words were little more than a whisper, so hurt was she.

He peered into her eyes, and she thought she saw his anger begin to cool, but he held it in place.

“I must compliment your acting talents," he said. "You had me convinced that you cared for me. Yet here you are, nearly bursting the seams of that dress on David’s arm when less than twenty-four hours ago you were kissing me, and quite enthusiastically I might add. You leave me no choice but to assume that any man with a pulse will satisfy your need for validation.”

Tears rushed to her eyes. “Is that really the kind of woman you take me for?” Her voice was barely audible. The look he gave her was cold and patronizing.

“I don’t take you for a woman right now,” he said. “I take you for a silly girl, playing at princess of the parlor. And I've no more time for your games.”

She covered her cheeks with her palms and ran into the house, locking herself inside her room. As she ripped the pins from her hair and nearly tore off the constricting gown and corset, she cursed aloud while a stream of tears stained her cheeks. Her chest felt painfully tight, but she knew she couldn’t lay all of the blame on Morgan. What else was he to think? She'd left him no other choice. Self-loathing descended upon her, but even accepting her own accountability could not erase the deep hurt she felt at what he’d said.

Morgan stomped toward the stables. He didn’t understand the mottled chaos of his mind and body. When he saw her leave with David in the carriage that evening, he truly felt that he was done trying for her. But then she'd run into his arms and a raging protectiveness burned inside of him. He was on fire for her in a way he’d never experienced. It wounded him that she didn’t return his affection, though she certainly responded to his kisses like she felt the same way. Did she respond the same to David’s kisses?

He growled as he slapped his open palm against a tree trunk and disappeared through the barn door. He slammed the portal shut, unaware that a pair of cold, gray eyes had followed Lila down the hill and now watched the boarding house from behind the brush nearby.

Nothing could assuage her foul mood. She fell asleep troubled and awoke in the same condition. Miners filled the table, chatting over eggs, bacon and coffee and she went right past them without a single glance, plopping into a rocking chair on the porch to replay the evening in her mind. Her pride and vanity were sore at David’s abandonment, but Morgan burned her through to the core.

The door opened beside her chair, and she watched as men filed through dressed in dirty pants and shirts with suspenders crossing their backs. Some carried jugs of water. Some puffed away on morning cigarettes or cigars. All nodded in greeting as they stomped into their thick boots, and headed toward the mines. When Morgan stepped out onto the porch, their eyes locked and she sucked in a breath, but he turned his gaze to the road and wandered off without a word.

Hours later, she released her frustrations on a boiling vat of peach jam. Bright orange bubbles burst open from the compote as Lila stirred fast enough to make her arms ache. The whirling blanket of steam from the stockpot dampened her face and made tiny hairs stick to her temples. She was thankful she had rolled her sleeves up before beginning the task as she could already feel herself overheating. Ellie came to a stand beside her and nodded approvingly down at the boiling mess.

“You’re doing good, Lila,” she said with a soft pat on the girl’s shoulders. “Your arms getting tired yet?”

“Boy, are they ever!” she replied. “I don’t know how you handle everything you do each day.”

“Well, it's been much easier with your help. You've been a true Godsend.”

“I've enjoyed making myself useful around here,” she told Ellie. “Who knows how long we’ll be staying? I'm happy to soak up all that I can from you.”

“What do you mean?” Ellie asked with a frown.

“Papa was talking this morning about moving up into Virginia City, maybe finding some place small to house a clinic. Now that Mr. Swift has healed and moved on, Papa spends much of his time up the hill anyway. The doctor up there has offered us a few rooms in his home.”

“Aah,” Ellie nodded in understanding. “Yeah, I suppose that would make sense for a doctor to have some place to work out of. We’ll sure miss you around here if you go. It’s been nice having another woman around.”

“We’ll still see each other. I'm not too fond of Virginia City. I'd rather spend my days here, learning how to make more than jam.” Lila grinned through a cloud of steam as she blew a floating wisp of hair out of her eyes.

“Speaking of which,” Ellie said, grabbing a small, square tin and returning to Lila’s side. “We need to add the finishing touch.” She popped open the lid and filled a heaping spoonful of a reddish-brown powder that Lila instantly recognized by its smell.

“Cinnamon?” she raised an eyebrow.

“Yep, it adds a nice tang to the sweetness. No one will ever know it’s there.”

An hour later, Lila gazed admiringly at a dozen glass jars of sparkling peach jam she had made all on her own. Her arms were sore, her lower back ached, her body was damp with sweat but she had never felt such a swell of personal pride. The feeling was becoming a familiar evening ritual. She turned her grin on Ellie, who was busy pulling a tray of miniature meat pies from the oven.

“Mmm,” Lila moaned as her stomach grumbled. “That smells heavenly.”

“Well, I’m glad you think so. It’s your lunch.”

“I can’t eat all of that,” she exclaimed with wide eyes, and Ellie chuckled.

“It’s not all for you. There’s one for me and Sadie, too, and some for the Kelly boys.”

“The Kellys? I thought they were in the mine today.”

“They are, but I take them lunch every day.”

"Ah, so that's where you've been disappearing off to every afternoon," Lila said. "I thought you'd taken a secret lover."

“Pssh. I’ve got my eye on a man, but he won’t have me.”

Lila’s eyes softened with sympathy. “But that’s awful. Has he said why not?”

“Oh, he blusters and balks enough that I know he’s interested. Thing is, he’s got no trade or nothing to support a family on, and his stubborn pride won’t let my business take care of us. So, he just carries on, pretending he don’t care for me, though the whole world knows different.”

“How does he get on if he doesn’t have a trade?”

“He tends bar across the road for the hotel, and he earns enough for his meager wants.” She shook her head woefully. “That numbskull. I would leave this place in a heartbeat and live with him in his hut if he asked me to.”

Lila frowned. "Pride is such a foolish thing to separate lovers."

"Honey, there are a lot of things that separate lovers, and almost all of them are foolish."

The savory scent of meat pies drifted under Lila's nose, and she changed the subject. “Well, the Kellys are definitely getting their money’s worth.”

She untied her apron and hung it on a peg near Ellie’s. A two-person square table sat in the corner of the room and Lila took a seat as Ellie carried a plate over to it. She pierced the pie with her fork. The meat and vegetable mixture still bubbled beneath the crust, so she sat back to let it cool while Ellie set four pies in a basket and covered it with a cloth.

“I’ll be back in a bit,” she said. She took one step in a puddle of water and yelped as her legs slid out from underneath her. Lila was by her side in an instant, helping her stand, but Ellie grimaced and rubbed her knee as she cursed beneath her breath. She was helped to a chair where she rattled on about all of the tasks yet to do and how she could not afford to go lame.

“Perhaps if you just rest your leg for a while, it will feel better,” Lila offered.

“That is an excellent suggestion.” Her eyes darted to the basket on the floor. “Only…the Kelly boys will be expecting their lunch and it’s a bit of a trek.”

Lila stared at the packed food and her heart fluttered at the thought of seeing Morgan. She needed to explain herself, whether he wanted to hear it or not. He was entitled to his opinion of her, but she would not accept such a low estimation without giving him the facts.

“I’ll take it to them,” she said finally, and Ellie smiled brightly.

“Oh, would you? That would be such a help. Here, let me draw you a map." She pulled a sheaf of paper and a pencil from the back of her cookbook and made directions for Lila.

“Can I get you anything before I go?” Lila said as she studied the map.

“No, darlin’. I’m fine. I’ll be sitting here when you get back.”

Lila nodded and grabbed the basket, descending the steps and heading for the road, waving a greeting at her father as he returned from Virginia City in a carriage. Ellie jumped from her seat and peeked out the door after her, a mischievous grin painted firmly in place.

The stake was wedged firmly between two shoulders of rock and as he slammed the edge of it with his hammer, he turned the pike by slight degrees. Val was behind him, laboring in the same way. The space was so tight their backs touched. A flicker of candlelight danced around them on the rock walls. They were only a hundred feet into the belly of the earth, but the amount of turns they took from the main corridor hid them from the daylight. Dirt coated every inch of their bodies, making their eyes shine like gems in the darkness. The heat was oppressive. Morgan stopped for a drink but it, too, had gone warm and failed to refresh him.

“Where’s Ellie?” Val said impatiently. “I’m starving.”

“She’s just running late,” Morgan replied. “I’m sure she’ll be along soon.”

“I appreciate you helping me, Morgan. I know your place has been empty for a few days now. You must be itching to get down there.”

“I am, but it can wait a little longer, at least long enough to get you to a stopping point so you can return the favor.”

Val smiled. “I’m looking forward to it, actually, getting above ground for a few days.”

“Who knows? Maybe you’ll like it better than you think and stay on with me.”

“Ha! Keep on trying, brother.” They laughed until they heard a feminine call nearby.

“Hello?”

Morgan recognized the voice instantly and came to his feet. “That’s Lila,” he told Val.

“What’s she doing down here?”

“I don’t know but she shouldn’t be…”

“Too late,” she said, emerging into the candlelight. “She’s here, and she’s brought your lunch, but if you’d rather she leave…” Her eyebrows shot high in question. She held a basket in one hand and a lantern in the other.

“No,” Morgan said. “She’s fine right where she is.” Her hair was tied back in a long braid, her sleeves rolled up for her day of work. The aroma of Ellie’s delectable meat pies wafted out toward him. She spared him a nervous glance and then turned to greet Val, clearing her throat.

“I’ll bet you’re hungry.”

“Famished,” Val took the basket as she held it out for him. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure,” she said. “How are you getting on here?”

“Business as usual,” he smiled back. “How about you?”

“Splendidly,” she said with enthusiasm. “I made my very first batch of jam today. Peach with a pinch of cinnamon. I would have brought you both some to try, but it needs a day or two to set, but you must promise me you’ll have some when it’s ready.”

"Of course," Val said with a smile. An uneasy silence fell at the thick tension in the air. Val's eyes darted back and forth between Morgan and Lila, who were doing their best not to look at one another, and he cleared his throat. "Let me go run up and get the water jug."

“We’ve got a full canteen right here,” Morgan protested, but Val didn’t listen.

“That won’t be enough,” he cried over his shoulder. “I’ll be right back.” He set the basket down and took off at a jog up the narrow tunnel and around the bend.

Morgan sighed and slapped the wooden tress above him. He hoped that Lila would follow Val out, but she didn't. The guilt had been eating him every second since he'd sent her away in tears. He had been callous and insulting, and though he hated making her cry, his anger and hurt was justified. He kept his back to her, knowing that one look into her shimmering eyes would blast his resolve. When she finally spoke he could hear the emotion in her voice.

"Morgan, you were right about what you said of David's behavior last night. I didn’t tell you at the time because I wanted to avoid a confrontation between you two, but the reason I walked back was because David refused to escort me and neither of us had money for the fare of a carriage. I had no choice but to return on my own. I did find it insulting, and believe me I scolded him."

His jaw clenched as his hands curled into tight fists. Maybe it was time he put David Gardner in his true place. As he envisioned confronting the man, Lila's next words pulled him back to the present.

"The night before last…after we kissed, I was surprised to learn that you had left town, and I didn't know what to think. All day I searched and waited for you, but you never returned until it was time for me to leave with David. I never had an opportunity to explain that I was only going with him out of politeness. He'd already purchased the tickets and the gown, and up until then had always been the perfect gentleman. I know how it appeared to you, and I can't bear knowing how lowly you think of me, but…"

Morgan couldn't take the pain in her voice any longer. God help him, but he loved her. He had never been in love before, but every ounce of his being told him that he loved her. One look into her eyes made him want to wilt into her embrace. One tremulous quiver of her lips and he longed to gather her in his arms and kiss away every fear and worry. He felt it from the first moment he saw her. Even if she had ridden away that same day, he knew in his very soul that his life would never be the same.

He turned to face her. There were no tears, but her eyes shimmered nonetheless. Since she was offering up her honesty, he believed it was time for his.

"You want to know why I said what I said last night?” She remained still as he took a step that brought them closer. “I was jealous.”

“Jealous?” she asked hesitantly.

“Insanely jealous.” His voice fell to a husky depth. He reached an arm out and curved it around her waist, pulling her closer so she could feel his breath as he spoke. “I want you for myself, Lila, and I’m not shy about it. I’ve kissed you twice now without invitation, but I want more. I want you in my life, in my home, but I don’t want you in it as David’s woman. I want you in it as mine.”

Morgan watched the full play of emotions brighten her features as he brought his hand up to cradle her cheek. His calloused palm rested gently against the smoothness of her skin. The pad of his thumb moved in a long, slow caress from her cheekbone down to the swell of her bottom lip. A shiver rippled through her body, and she shut her eyes. His lips hovered above hers for a long, tormented moment as he ran his eyes over every soft feature of her face. Rosy lips teased his restraint with their lushness like sweet, sacred nectar tempting the thirst of a desert dweller.

He wanted to taste her, to suckle each sensitive inch of her, to feel her flesh quiver with desire beneath the exploration of his ready hands. Desire thrust into every last vein inside of him, tightening and flexing, coiled so intensely that the slightest surrender would send it springing forward fiercely. He steeled himself against it, damming the flood of feverish lust, and swallowed past the hoarseness in his throat. The thought that she had been in David’s arms, and might be again, helped to calm the racing of his blood.