Teton Sunrise (Teton Romance Trilogy) (19 page)

He led her to where his bedroll was laid out on the ground, just beyond the glow of the fire. “Get some sleep.”

Releasing her hand, he was about to turn. Evelyn reached into the darkness and caught hold of his shirtsleeve. She moved closer, not about to let him walk away from her so easily.

“I love you, Alex,” she whispered, and lifted her hand to his face. His warm hand covered hers, and he inhaled a deep breath. Leaning forward and up, she touched her lips to his. Alex grasped her hand for a moment and returned her soft kiss, then quickly released her.

“I’ll bring some more blankets for you. You won’t be cold.” He stepped away from her and disappeared into the darkness.

Evelyn inhaled a deep breath and blew the air out from between parted lips. She didn’t want more blankets to keep her warm. If memory served her right from the night before, Alex was more than capable of making sure she wouldn’t be cold. Had he deliberately decided to take first watch to avoid her? Was it something she was doing wrong? Was she being too forward?

The most exhilarating feeling had swept through her after Alex told her he wanted her to share his blankets. She would truly be his wife in all ways now. He told her he loved her. His kisses and embrace spoke louder than his words. Evelyn was giddy with happiness up until they rode into camp, and Alex seemed to close up again.  She wasn’t sure how she should react, or whether her forward behavior would be considered inappropriate. She had no experience in these matters. Everything she’d always heard was that in a marriage, the man was to be in charge and lead in the matters of intimacy.

Alex reappeared with a pile of furs and blankets, and laid them out on top of what was already there.

“I’ll be nearby. Don’t worry about anything.” He pulled her into his arms, and Evelyn melted against him.

“I told you already, I’m not afraid when you’re near,” she said huskily, and wrapped her arms around his middle. His chest heaved,
then
he lowered his mouth to hers. Evelyn parted her lips, hoping he’d kiss her again the way he’d done before they returned to camp.

“
Ya
sure
ya
don’t want Laurent or me to take first watch?” Jasper’s voice came out of the darkness. He chuckled loudly.

“Go,” Evelyn whispered, resigning
herself
to the fate of a cold bed. She didn’t want to appear as a wanton, although she would have much rather held Alex back and begged him to stay with her. Silently, she conceded that being in such close proximity of the other men would not be a good way to share intimate moments with her husband.

My husband!
For the first time, Evelyn truly thought of Alex as her husband. Her heart swelled, and she couldn’t wait to begin the rest of her life with him. She had a lot to learn about living in the wilderness, but she had no doubt she would be happy. Just as Aimee Osborne was happy and raised a family alongside her husband, she could do the same. Aimee had even told her that she saw her as capable of living here.

Alex left her side in silence after his hands lingered at her waist. Evelyn sank to her knees on the pile of furs and untied the leather thong in her hair. A slight shiver ran down her spine, not from the cold, but from anticipation of Alex returning in a few hours. Her skin tingled from the memory of him holding her in a protective embrace while they rode back to camp.

 After working her fingers through the knots in her hair, she quickly
rebraided
it and coiled the leather around the end. She crawled under the thick buffalo robe, and stared wide-eyed up at the stars twinkling high above. Minutes later, she rolled to her side and punched her hand against the blanket that served as her pillow.

Unable to sleep, she pulled her knees up to her belly and listened to the soft cracking and popping sounds of the fire. An owl hooted in a nearby tree, and the crickets and frogs kept up their loud cadenced chorus. The day’s events raced through her mind. Evelyn suddenly realized how close to death she had come not once, but twice in one day. And both times, Alex had been there to rescue her, just like he’d rescued her from a mob of eager trappers, and many years ago when he defended her against Charlie. Evelyn inhaled a deep breath, and blinked away the tears that pooled in her eyes. She couldn’t dwell on the past. Her family was gone, but she had a husband who loved her and protected her, and she had to move on.

Loud snores from the opposite side of the campfire mixed with the sounds of the night. Evelyn squeezed her eyes shut, and the more she wished for sleep to overtake her, the more awake she became. Memories of Alex kissing her, holding her, telling her that he loved her wouldn’t allow her mind any rest. When Laurent grunted and stirred under his blankets, and muffled voices reached her ear, her heart pounded in her chest. Had she lain awake for two hours already? Would Alex come to her now and expect his rights as her husband?

Evelyn bit her lower lip.
It’s what you want. You want to be his wife in all ways.
She wouldn’t refuse him. She was ready for him this time, unlike the previous night when he’d startled her awake. Her heart raced with anticipation of what was to come. She only hoped that she wouldn’t disappoint him.

The covers behind her lifted slightly, and Evelyn held her breath. She hadn’t even heard Alex approach. Every nerve ending on her skin snapped to awareness of the man who slid under the covers next to her. Perspiration beaded on her forehead, and she wished she wasn’t under the heavy buffalo robe. It had become much too hot all of a sudden.

Evelyn exhaled slowly. She scarcely dared to breathe. Nothing happened. Alex remained immobile a few inches from her. His body heat burned right into her. He rolled to his side, facing away from her, and sudden tears spilled from her eyes. Crying silently, she swallowed her disappointment, and stared into the darkness. As exhausted as she was from the day’s events, sleep would be a long time coming.

Chapter 14

The horses splashed cautiously through the water, picking their way slowly over the abundant rocks that lined the river bottom. Evelyn held tight to the horn of her saddle, keeping her focus on the mountains ahead. She tried to let their beauty sweep away the apprehension in her mind. Laurent had called this the Snake River, and it was the widest body of water they had to cross so far.  The uneven, rocky footing gave her cause for alarm, even if the water level wasn’t all that high. All it took was one slip of a hoof, and one of the animals could take a fall.

The majestic mountain range of the
Teewinots
loomed ever closer. For three days, they had traveled toward the towering snow-capped peaks. Evelyn gazed in amazement at nature’s splendor before her. She was used to seeing mountains, but foothills and lower outlying hills usually preceded the taller ranges. These mountains rose abruptly out of the ground before them, as if some invisible force had lifted them in this location. No wonder the trappers chose to congregate here. It was the perfect landmark to draw men from hundreds of miles away.

Evelyn’s horse took an abrupt misstep, its head bobbing to catch its balance, which launched her forward in the saddle. An involuntary squeal escaped her mouth, and her hands tightened around the saddle horn as if it would prevent the animal from collapsing completely. Recovering its footing, the horse scrambled on. Up ahead of her, Alex’s upper body rotated in the saddle, and he shot a worried glance her way. He halted his mount mid-stream, and his two packhorses came to a stop beside him.

“You all right?” he called.

Evelyn nodded vigorously. Determined to prove herself capable of traveling with the men, she wasn’t about to show her apprehension. Laurent’s horse moved past her, and he offered a smile of encouragement. Yancey guided his own horse awkwardly behind the Frenchman’s set of mules, his upper body hanging stooped-over in the saddle. Evelyn wondered how much longer he could remain in the saddle before he dropped from his
horse’s
back. Laurent had built a travois for the injured easterner, on which Yancey had ridden since they left the camp where the bear had nearly mauled him to death. Today was the first time he was back in the saddle. Everyone had agreed that a travois could not be pulled through this wide river.

Alex waited for Evelyn’s horse to reach him,
then
he guided his own mount close to her.

“We’re almost across,” he said, concern etched on his face. “It’s not as far as it looks. I should have stayed beside you.” His eyes roamed her face.

Evelyn glanced up at him briefly,
then
forced a smile. “I know,” she said, and eased her tight grip on the saddle. “The horse stumbled and it was unexpected. I’m all right.”

Alex reached out and touched her arm, letting his hand slide from her shoulder to her elbow. Evelyn pressed her lips together, and tried to avoid the renewed jolt of adrenaline that rushed through her. This time it had nothing to do with fear of falling from her horse into the frigid water. It was a familiar reaction whenever Alex touched her. A sudden burst of annoyance swept over her, and she nudged her horse in the ribs with her heels, determined to reach the opposite riverbank on her own.

Since his declaration of love, Alex had been nothing but the perfect gentleman. Evelyn imagined that even a properly courting couple back in St. Louis would touch and kiss more than what she and the man who called himself her husband were doing. Every night, he sent her to their common sleeping area, bid her goodnight with a light kiss, and stood watch for hours before waking Laurent or Jasper to take a turn. He’d crawl under their blanket and roll to his side, facing away from her, leaving her to stare into the darkness until sleep finally claimed her.

True, he watched over her like a hawk, and saw to her every need, but he made no move to claim her as his wife in every sense of the word. The few times she caught him far enough away from camp to do more than hold casual conversations, he’d pulled her into his arms and kissed her with such tender restraint, Evelyn thought she would go mad with need. Once, she’d tried to prolong their kiss by wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, and just when she thought he would answer her unspoken request, Alex had pulled away abruptly and declared they needed to return to camp.

Evelyn’s horse finally reached the safety of dry land, and she inhaled a deep breath of relief. Her frustration with Alex grew, however, when he rode past her and resumed his position at the head of the group.

Jasper parted ways with them after crossing a wide open sedge-covered meadow several hours later. He tipped his furry hat at her,
then
slapped Alex on the back.

“Take good care
a that
wife a
yer’s
, Walker,” he said loudly as his parting words, and raised his arm in the air in a departing wave.

“Why does he travel by himself?” Evelyn whispered to Laurent.

“He prefers the solitude, I believe. Some men would much rather be alone than in the company of others.”

Evelyn shot a quick glance at Alex’s back. Was he a man who preferred the solitude? Was she merely a burden to him? He’d already told her that here in the mountains he had no one to answer to. He told her that he loved her, but did he truly want her to be with him?

You have to find a way to make him see you as his wife
. Was she bold enough to try seducing her husband? Evelyn absently licked her lips. She didn’t know the first thing about seducing a man. She knew she enjoyed his strong arms around her. His kisses made her go weak in the knees and her heart race in her chest. What did Alex like? It had taken a kidnapping to get him to finally admit that he loved her. What would it take for him to truly see her as a woman? She nudged her horse in the sides to catch up to him. What did she have to lose? If she failed, perhaps nothing would change.
If she somehow succeeded . . .

Alex’s head turned her way when she rode up beside him. The corners of his mouth curved in a soft grin, and his eyes roamed her face appreciatively. Evelyn smiled brightly at him, and Alex’s eyebrows rose.

“You seem more at ease now that the river is behind us.” He cleared his throat, and focused his attention straight ahead again. “I didn’t know you were afraid of water.”

Was that a hint of teasing in his tone? Evelyn’s heart sped up. He was usually so reserved and serious. Encouraged, she guided her horse closer to his. Her lower leg brushed up against his, and Alex shot her another quick look,
then
glanced down at their legs.

“You should know I’m not afraid of water,” she said. She raised her chin and shook some lose strands of hair from her face, and stared straight ahead.

“How would I know that?”

“Remember the summer you and Henry hung that rope over that big sycamore tree down by Willow Creek? It was a really hot day, and you were both nude from the waist up, and Henry suggested you should remove all your clothing, and . . .” Evelyn glanced to the side at him. Her face flamed.  Alex looked straight at her, and the smile vanished from his face. His eyes locked onto hers, and Evelyn thought she might drown in their blue depths. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she laughed.

“You were spying on us?” he asked, his eyes wide.

“No.” She quickly shook her head in denial. “I was . . . ah . . . merely coming to the creek for a drink of water, and I overheard. I left immediately.” Evelyn wished she had a cool glass of water available to her at this very moment. Her attempt at seduction wasn’t going so well.