The Rancher Takes A Bride (19 page)

Yet Travis thought the worst of her. Thought she was capable of stealing, whoring, and other vile crimes. Her life had not been the purest, but even she had not stooped to the lowest levels of behavior that Travis obviously thought her capable of.

She must be going crazy. For some unexplainable reason, she wanted him. Within Travis's arms, she felt secure, as if nothing bad could ever harm her again. Even with the fire blazing about them, she felt Travis would have protected her, kept her safe.

She had to leave. She had to get away before she did something really stupid, like fall in love with Travis. Because regardless of how she felt about this man, she doubted he could ever return the feeling. At least, not with a woman like her. He could never love Desirée. Therefore Rose would never be good enough for him, either.

As soon as she was back to her normal self, she had to get away. She took a sip of hot tea and leaned back against the pillows. A knock on the door startled her.

"Yes?"

Eugenia stuck her head in. "Do you feel like company?"

Travis's mother stepped into the room, her skirts rustling as she moved.

"Of course I do. Come in and tell me what the doctor said."

"He said the both of you were fools for taking such a risk. And that you were fortunate. Stay in bed, drink plenty of fluids, and expect to do a lot of coughing over the next few days. Travis is already grumbling."

"I guess that's my fault too," Rose said her voice raspy and gruff.

"That's my oldest son." Rose watched as Eugenia wrung her hands nervously. "I must say thank you for saving our livestock. Our animals are important, but I wouldn't want anything to happen to either you or Travis. I'm missing one son already and couldn't bear to lose another."

She gazed at Rose, her voice steady, her eyes unwavering. "You've made it clear that you don't care for horses since you arrived on the back of my son's mare. I wonder if that's the real reason you went into that barn?"

Rose chewed her lip. "I didn't want to see the animals die, even though they frighten me."

The memory of the flames racing up the walls and the sound of the ceiling crashing as they ran caused her to shudder. "I did release the animals, but not because I was brave. Because they were trapped, and I didn't want to see them die."

"Rose, you
are
very brave. But more than anything, I like the way you stand up to my son." Eugenia smiled. "1 know you're not here under the best of circumstances, but I have to tell you I'm so glad you've come into our lives."

"Thank you, Mrs. Burnett. But what about your ring? Don't you think I stole it?"

Eugenia paused. "Rose, I hope that you will for—"

"Mother!"

Rose rolled her eyes.

Eugenia released a sigh. "Excuse me, dear."

***

Sick of lying around the house, Travis was eager to escape the confines of his room and get back to running the ranch. But somehow his mother had convinced everyone to ignore his demands and reminded him the doctor said to take it easy for several days. At last count, he'd been escorted twice to the sofa and told to stay there.

He settled into the parlor, where he could watch the comings and goings of the ranch from the front window and still work on his bookkeeping. And catch a glimpse of Rose in his pants as she went about the house, trying to help his mother, only to be shooed back to the parlor or her bedroom to rest.

The sight of her cute little derriere in his tight- fitting pants was enough to cause the parts of his body that weren't sore to ache. The dress she had worn the day of the fire was a total loss. Hopefully, Rose's trunk would be in town waiting for him when he went in to buy the lumber needed to replace the barn.

All he'd thought about since the night of the fire was a way to get Rose into his bed. There must be a place they could be alone, where she could seduce him, free him of this madness he seemed trapped in right now.

Even now he wanted to grab her and kiss her until she was moaning beneath him. The little con artist had somehow weaved a spell around him until all he could think of was holding her in his arms and other delightful things that he wanted to do with her seductive body.

Being cooped up in this house was only adding to his growing frustration at needing Rose.

The sound of horse's hooves thundering into the yard had him leaning to gaze out the window to see his brother Tucker riding in.

A few minutes later, the front door opened and slammed shut. "Where is everyone? I ride all the way from town and no one comes to greet me?"

"In here," Travis called, his voice still raspy.

Tucker stepped into the parlor just as Rose came out from the kitchen. "What happened to you?"

"Humph! I . . ."

Rose stepped into the room, a frown creasing her forehead as she glanced between the brothers. "Hello, marshal. Should I be packing my bags for a visit to jail?"

Travis watched as his younger brother's mouth dropped open at the sight of Rose in his pants.

"Not that I know of." Tucker cleared his throat. "Though maybe I should lock you up for looking so good in my brother's clothes."

She laughed, faintly embarrassed. "Because of the fire, this is all I have to wear."

"If I had anything to do with it, that's all women would ever wear. Sweet, lovely pants that showed—"

"All right, Tucker, we get your point," Travis interrupted, irritated at his brother's obvious perusal of Rose.

The sight of his brother ogling Rose made him more than irritated. He felt like punching something. He wanted to yank his brother down to the ground and wrestle, as if they were kids once again, but this time it wouldn't be playing. This time his punches would be for real.

Rose smiled. "You must have ridden out here for me to read your palm again."

Travis felt his nerve endings prickle with displeasure. Her lips were turned up into a smile that was genuine, friendly, and reached all the way to her eyes. Eyes the color of a field in springtime that suddenly sparkled with amusement. She'd never smiled at him that way.

Tucker smiled. "No thanks, ma'am. I think I'll skip this time."

"Suit yourself."

Tucker laughed. "I don't think I want to know about my future, even if a pretty lady like yourself would be holding my hand."

Travis didn't know whether he wanted to puke or growl. The two of them were flirting openly—and this was the man who had locked her in a jail cell. He cleared his throat.

"Just tell me when you're ready to try again."

Travis coughed, and the two of them turned and looked at him. About damn time someone realized he was still in the room.

Eugenia walked into the parlor. "Tucker, I'm glad you came." She hugged him. "I guess you heard about the fire."

"Heard in town you two had some trouble, and I wanted to come check on you, make sure everything was all right."

Eugenia took him by the arm and walked Tucker to a chair and began to tell him about the fire. "We had a little mishap with a lantern, which started a fire in the barn. Rose saved all of our livestock and horses that were inside. It was a miracle that no one got hurt."

Tucker glanced at Rose, astonishment on his face, then at Travis. "Rose? I thought ..."

"Yes, her real name is Rose Severin. Not Desirée," Travis said irritably.

"Oh," Travis said, looking confused. "So, Rose, you got all the livestock out. What was my big brother doing?"

"Once he realized I was in there, he rushed in,"

"I got there as soon as I could," Travis said crossly.

Eugenia broke in. "But Rose saw the smoke coming from the barn, and she ran in and released all the animals. Travis ran in after Rose, and together they walked out the barn door just as the roof collapsed from the fire."

"Glad to hear you're okay, brother." Tucker turned back to Rose. "What about you, Rose?"

"Oh, I didn't get hurt. Burned my fingers and my dress."

Tucker laughed. "Is that why you're wearing my brother's clothes?"

"Yes, since my trunk went to Austin without me, that dress was all I had."

Eugenia cleared her throat and frowned at her older son. "Travis doesn't want Rose to go to town and do any shopping. She's confined to quarters until the return of my ring, even though she did save our livestock, including his favorite horse."

Travis glared at his mother. For someone who had had her wedding band stolen, her most precious possession, as she so rightly put it, she wasn't being very cooperative. She was siding with Rose against him, her own son!

Tucker glanced at his brother, his eyes dancing with mischief. Travis knew that look and it didn't bode well. His younger brother had often been a prankster, and somehow he felt as if he was going to be on the receiving end of one of Tucker's jokes.

"Since I'm the marshal in town, I overrule my brother's laws. I would love to take you to town shopping, Rose. After helping the family the way you have, I would think that Travis owes you a new dress."

Rose smiled. "Oh, no, really—that's not necessary."

"I insist. After all, he's the reason you don't have your trunk," Tucker insisted.

"Tucker!" Travis warned.

"You're right. Travis should buy you a new dress, since you lost your last one in the fire," Eugenia acknowledged. "And we all could use a trip into town."

Tucker shrugged. "I would be delighted to escort Rose and Mother shopping while you recuperate."

"I don't think so," Travis said in a low voice. "I was planning on taking Rose with me when I pick up the lumber for the new barn."

"But that's not what you said several nights ago, when we talked about going into town," Rose said, confused. "You told me in no uncertain terms that until the ring was found, I was staying here!"

"I've changed my mind. I'll take you."

"And buy her a new dress," Eugenia added.

Travis glared at his mother and younger brother. "And buy her a damned new dress."

Travis tagged along behind his mother and Rose down Second Street, on their way to Pearl's dress shop. A week had passed since the barn fire, and he was still perturbed at the way his mother and brother had forced the issue of his bringing Rose to town. Rose deserved a new dress and much more for her heroics, but he wasn't about to let Tucker bring her into town alone.

Somehow his brother had switched over to the enemy camp and was not only flirting outrageously with Rose, but treating her like a cherished lady, not the con artist he had locked up in a cell.

Still, the sight of Rose, even in his mother's over- large, borrowed dress was a pleasant view. Walking behind her and watching the rhythmic swish of her skirt, in beat with the sway of her shapely behind, was enough to keep a man following close to her rear.

Tucker nudged his brother and leaned close. "Miss Severin certainly has enough curves to tempt a man."

"Don't you need to go protect the town or something?" Travis replied.

"Not today. I took the day off. Thought you might need some company on this little excursion."

"What I need is for my youngest brother to keep his eyes and hands off this girl."

Tucker chuckled loudly enough that it drew the attention of his mother and Rose.

Eugenia turned around. "What's so funny, Tucker?"

"My brother has lost his sense of humor," he replied.

Rose turned around. "Did he ever have one?"

Tucker continued to laugh, while Travis all but growled at them.

Finally, Eugenia halted in front of the dress shop door. "There's no need for the two of you to wait on us. Why don't you boys come back in a couple of hours?"

"Not a chance, Mother. I'm staying right here with you," Travis replied.

"Suit yourself." Eugenia pushed open the door, and they all followed her inside the little shop.

Travis felt as if he'd walked into a woman's oversized armoire as he strolled past a rack of dresses, skirts, and blouses, his boots clanking against the wooden floor. Bolts of material stood at attention, lining the walls, ready to be shaped and formed into the latest creations. Hats decorated the walls, with wisps of feathers and trails of ribbon adorning the bonnets.

Everywhere he looked there were feminine frills that made him feel about as comfortable as a dog in a cattery. He removed his hat and twirled it about in his hands. He and Tucker were the only men in the shop. Travis glanced at his brother, watching him scan the room and come to the same conclusion.

A frown creased his forehead. "Sure you don't want to go down the street to Frank's Saloon?"

"No, but God, I hope they hurry. Have you ever seen so many frills in one place?" Travis asked.

"Nope. I'm just hoping no one saw me come in here. It could be tough to discourage outlaws, if they see me in a women's store."

Travis slapped his brother on the back. "You could threaten to strap them into a corset."