Teton Sunrise (Teton Romance Trilogy) (22 page)

Her forehead wrinkled, and her eyes clouded with confusion. “You plan to return me to St. Louis?” she whispered, the hurt loud and clear in her voice. A slight shiver passed through her.

Alex chuckled, and smiled slowly. He caressed her cheek, while his other hand gripped her waist. “No,” he said in a low voice. “That’s not the part I’m talking about.” He inhaled deeply,
then
stared into her eyes. “I . . . I don’t want you as my wife for appearances only. I want to touch you, and hold you, and make love to you.”

“Alex,”
Evie
sobbed. She gripped his shoulders and pressed closer. “How many nights have I waited for you to hold me, and . . . and come to me as my husband,” she whispered. “I was starting to believe you didn’t like me.”

Alex’s chest exploded with such raw emotion, he couldn’t put a name to it. All he knew was that he loved
Evie
, and she just told him that she wanted to be his. Another shiver passed through her, and he quickly scooped her in his arms, just as he’d done the night before. Water poured off her body, and he waded back to shore. Evelyn wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

“Time to warm you up,” he said, and grinned. “No interruptions.”

Alex’s heart pounded fiercely in his chest. The cold early morning air felt good against his heated skin, but Evelyn shivered in his arms. She clung to his neck, and he hurried to their pile of furs and blankets. Laying her on top of a thick buffalo robe, he knelt beside her and reached for a blanket.

Evie’s
gaze of unmistakable love and trust took his breath away. She lifted her arms up to him. His eyes roamed first her face,
then
traveled lower. The white cotton of her undergarment hid none of her feminine beauty. Alex forced air into his lungs. He lowered himself next to her, and
Evie
rolled to the side and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“You won’t warm up in your wet underclothes,” he whispered as he nuzzled her ear. His hand slid along the curves of her hips until he met with the end of the fabric, then back up, sliding the damp material upward. He pulled it over her head, and once she was free of the garment, wrapped her in his arms.

“Come here,” he said huskily. “I want to feel you next to me, all of you.”

“I love you, Alex,”
Evie
murmured, and pressed her lips to his. Alex moaned, and rolled her to her back. He claimed her mouth unhurriedly, wanting to make every exquisite first moment with her last. His hands explored her curves, loving the feel of her soft breasts against his chest.

“No more misunderstandings,” Alex mumbled as his lips grazed along her neck. “I’ll never lay a hand on you,
Evie
. I swear it.” He wanted to make sure she understood that she had nothing to fear from him.

Evie’s
hands gripped his shoulders. A wide smile formed on her face. Then she started to giggle. “Then what do you call what you’re doing right now, Alex Walker?” She leaned her head forward, glancing to where one of his hands rested on her hip. Slowly, she raised her leg and ran her foot along his thigh. “I like having your hands on me,” she whispered huskily.

Alex groaned. Heat coursed through him, and his stomach tightened almost painfully.

“I love you, Evelyn.” He brought his mouth down on hers, and crushed her to him. She breathed heavily against his lips, and her hands ran up and down his back, scorching his skin wherever she touched him.

He kissed her long and slow, until Evelyn began to squirm beneath him.

“Alex,” she gasped.

He knew what she was asking, and that there was no easy way the first time.

“
Evie
, I might hurt you,” he whispered against her neck. Apprehension filled him.

“You’ll never hurt me, Alex,” she panted. “Haven’t you realized that by now?” She held her hand to his cheek, a trusting smile on her face. Her eyes smoldered with passion, and Alex swallowed. It was too late to turn back. He couldn’t wait any longer.  Slowly, he eased her legs apart. He settled between her thighs, and slowly pushed past the barrier that told him she was his, and only his. His heart raced in his chest, and warmth rushed through him. She gasped when he entered her fully, and he waited until her body relaxed beneath him.

“This is the last time I’ll ever hurt you,
Evie
, I swear it,” he breathed against her neck.

Evie’s
gasps and moans of pleasure when he moved inside her drove him onward. She wrapped her legs around his back, and cried his name when her body began to convulse. He shuddered against her in his own release, and their bodies, slick with sweat, melted together in a heap of dangling limbs and blankets.

Alex rolled to his back and drew her up close to him. He wrapped her in his arms, waiting for his breathing to slow. Holding her tightly to him, he would always remember the feeling of her heart beating against his chest. He gazed down at her, and caught her staring up at him, a soft smile on her face. She touched her hand to his damp chest, and a warm sense of peace and contentment flowed through him. Words eluded him. He tucked some strands of her tousled hair behind her ear, and kissed her forehead.

Evie
rested her head in the crook of his arm and sighed. His heart nearly burst with love for her; with the knowledge that she felt safe with him. Alex ran his fingers through her damp hair, the tension that he’d lived with for so many years slowly melting away in the arms of the woman who had become his entire world. The thought of ever losing her was unthinkable. They lay together in silence, and watched the sun rise over the tallest of the Teton peaks. A golden glow spread along the mountains to match the glow in his heart.

Chapter 17

Evelyn stirred awake, and her eyelids fluttered open. A soft smile spread across her lips and she arched her back in a languid stretch, moaning softly. Warm and relaxed, her bare leg draped over Alex’s hard thigh.

“
Mornin
’,” he murmured, and leaned over her. His calloused hand ran along her neck and behind her head, just before his mouth covered hers. Her body ignited instantly as ripples of desire spread through her. She wrapped her arms around her husband’s neck and welcomed him to her.

For the last week, this was how her days started and ended, and she had never been happier. Alex doted on her almost to the point that she had to tell him to find something else to do besides hover over her. It didn’t matter if Laurent, Yancey, or a small gathering of Indians stood nearby. At every opportunity throughout the day, he’d find a reason to be near her and touch her. He’d often pull her into his arms and kiss her to the point that she wished for night to come quickly. 

Work had begun on their cabin. Alex cleared an area a short distance from the lake where they had first consummated their marriage, and used the
lodgepoles
he felled to build the framework of their home.  He constantly asked for her opinion and input on matters such as where the door should go, or the window, the hearth, and the bedroom. Rather than a simple one-room trapper cabin, he planned to build a two-room home for her, even after she insisted she didn’t need such an elaborate dwelling. He’d used her protests as an excuse to pull her into the bushes, and by the time they re-emerged, she was willing to tell him anything he wanted to hear. 

Lying in his arms now, Evelyn listened to the sound of the slight breeze that flapped against the deerskin covering of the tent Alex had erected at the edge of the Indian camp. Until their cabin was finished, this would be their home. Outside, horses whinnied and people’s voices drifted in. A thin ribbon of bright light streamed down through the small opening at the top of the conical structure, a sure indication that a new day was well underway.

Evelyn had little trouble blocking out the noise. Her entire focus centered on the man in her arms, making love to her with such tender devotion that it took her breath away. She trailed kisses along his shoulder and chest, her fingers tracing the outline of the fresh scar from the bullet he received at the hand of Charlie Richardson.

“He could have killed you,” Evelyn whispered against his neck. Alex rolled to the side and wrapped his arms around her.

“Who?”
His forehead wrinkled. He caressed her shoulder, his hand traveling slowly along the contours of her body and over the curve of her hips with practiced familiarity.

“Charlie,” Evelyn clarified, and kissed the scar.

Alex scoffed. “I’ll deal with him next spring when we return to St. Charles.”

Evelyn’s head shot up to look up at him. “What are you planning to do?”

A wide grin formed on Alex’s face. “I’m going to marry you in a church, for starters.”

Evelyn’s pulse quickened. Startled, she shook her head. “I don’t need a church wedding to feel married to you, Alex. I don’t want you getting in trouble with the law. Everyone in St. Charles thinks you killed my parents. If you’re recognized, they’ll hang you. They won’t ask questions.”

“Your folks were always good to me,
Evie
. Your ma bandaged me up every time I stopped by with some new injury, and remember how they let me stay for days at a time when I didn’t want to go home?” Alex’s face sobered, and his jaw clenched. “I won’t stand by and allow their murder to go unpunished.” His body tensed, and he drew her more firmly to him.

Evelyn clasped his face between her hands. She studied the pained expression in his eyes. “I never realized how hard it was for you, growing up. I know that he . . . hit you and your mother, and everyone always turned a blind eye.”

Alex’s gaze roamed her face. His blue eyes, which had smoldered with passion a moment ago, were now iced over in anger. “I wish the old bastard were still alive, so I could kill him myself for what he did to my mother,” he said, his voice taking on a menacing tone.

“You’re not a killer, Alex. You’re not like him.” Evelyn stroked his jawline, and leaned up to kiss his lips.

He scoffed. “I’ve killed my share of men.” His voice matched the chill in the air.

Evelyn ran her fingers along his rough cheek. “I would wager that every man whose life you’ve taken would have killed you first if you hadn’t acted. You had plenty of chances to kill your father, but you walked away instead. Let him go.” 

Alex nodded slowly, and held her tight. His facial features softened, and a slow grin spread across his lips. He nuzzled her neck, sending ripples of pleasure racing along her spine. She purred as Alex methodically worked his magic on her with his mouth and hands.

“I don’t know how I will get our cabin built before winter,” he growled softly in her ear. “You are the most delectable distraction.”

Evelyn wound her arms around his neck, giving herself over completely to the pleasurable sensations his touch evoked.  Without him, she no longer felt whole.

“Remind me to thank Laurent again for bringing you to me,” he said huskily.

“Laurent!”
Evelyn exclaimed, and she pushed against Alex’s chest. The mention of his friend suddenly reminded her of something important.

Alex’s hand froze against her thigh, and he raised his torso away from her. His forehead wrinkled and a perplexed look washed over his face. The corner of his lips twitched into a smile.

“If that’s the reaction I get for mentioning his name, I’ll never utter it again,” Alex mumbled.
“Especially not at times like this.”
He lowered his head back to hers. Evelyn pushed harder against him to prevent his intended kiss. Although she could never deny her husband, and would much rather lie in his arms all day, a sudden thought entered her mind.

Alex’s smile turned into a slight frown. Evelyn reached her hand up to touch his cheek. Her fingers softly outlined his lips.

“Don’t you know what today is?” she asked. Alex’s brows drew together in confusion. Clearly, he didn’t remember.

“Laurent and Whispering Waters’ wedding ceremony.”
She’d almost forgotten it herself. Whispering Waters had asked Evelyn to be with her today while she prepared for her union with the Frenchman. After their initial encounter, she had taken an immediate liking to the soft-spoken Indian woman, and she was glad for the friendship that slowly developed between them. She’d missed not having another woman to talk to, and Whispering Waters’ grasp on English was good enough for most conversations.

Alex hesitated,
then
inhaled a dramatic breath of air before he rolled off of her and onto his back. Evelyn threw back the fur covers, shivering as a blast of cold air hit her bare skin. She sat up and reached for the newly-sewn muslin
dress that lie
in a tangled heap next to the palate of furs. Alex’s warm palm stroked along her lower back, and sent a completely different chill racing down her spine.

“And that’s the reason you’re leaving our bed?” he asked. “It’s much warmer under the covers.” Evelyn glanced over her shoulder at him, meeting the pleading look in his eyes, and the wide grin that spread on his face.

“I promised I’d help with the festivities. Besides, who was it that complained about not getting a cabin built?” She raised her brows at him, and hoped her stern look had the desired effect. Apparently it didn’t. In one fast move that Evelyn would have missed had she blinked, Alex grabbed her upper arms and hauled her backwards. She squealed and giggled as he rolled her over, and pulled her on top of him.