It seemed all they managed to do was get angry with each other.
“Didn’t think you’d come back.” He spoke softly. She felt the heat of his dark gaze.
Turning to him, she shrugged. “I thought we could talk.”
“Talk?” Chase’s expression revealed his outright confusion.
“Yes, Chase. Talk. Like two grown-ups.”
He raised his brows. “About what?”
“Anything you want.”
“I’m not much for talking, Letty Sue, but I will say this, you’re a remarkable woman. Not too many women would have done what you did today.”
She didn’t agree. She’d felt inadequate, and then humiliated until Chase had once again saved her pride. “Because I hired someone to cook a meal for me?”
Seeming admiration sparked in his eyes. “Well, yeah.”
A hint of a smile began surfacing, curving her lips. “I do what has to get done, Chase.”
“Resourceful.”
“When I have to be.”
“It’s an admirable trait, Letty Sue. You don’t give up and you hold your head high.”
“At least I got something from Mama.”
Chase leaned back, stretching out his long legs, bracing himself with his elbows. Letty Sue did the same. The strong sweet Southern sun peeked through the branches, warming her cheeks.
She glanced over at Chase. His rugged jaw was set, and his ink-black hair curled slightly at the nape, lifting in the soft breeze. A white shirt fit snugly on broad shoulders, the color setting off his deeply bronzed skin.
Letty Sue recalled his potent kisses last night, his tender yet tough way of making her yield to his passion. He’d touched her as no other man ever had. She wanted more—she’d wanted it all. She should feel shamed at the wanton way she’d behaved, but instead, she felt contentment such as she’d never known before. The recollections of last night heated her body and warmed her heart. No other man had ever evoked in her such intimate and heady responses.
Only Chase.
“Is it because of Mama, Chase?”
He caught her meaning immediately and didn’t hesitate to answer. For that, she was grateful. He glanced at her quickly before lifting his face to the sun. “There was a woman once that caused me nothing but grief, Letty Sue.” He brought his head down and leveled a gaze at her. His eyes were bright with honesty, his voice earnest. “Spoiled, selfish, beautiful.” He stared at Letty Sue then, and added, “The boss’s stepdaughter.”
The similarities couldn’t be missed. And by the way Chase was looking at her, she knew he, too, believed her to be all of those things. A lump lodged in her throat. To deny those similarities would serve no purpose. Chase had stated his case, more than once, letting her know exactly what he thought of her. The insult felt like a harsh slap to her cheek.
“She hurt you. You wanted her and she hurt you.”
Chase didn’t deny it. Unwelcome emotion roiled within her as she thought of Chase and his desire for another woman.
“What we want and what we can have are two different notions, Letty Sue.”
“I’ve heard that said before. But I never understood the meaning. I always thought you should go after what you want, as long as no one gets hurt.”
“Snow Cloud once told me that sometimes you can’t help the hurt, even when you do the right thing.”
“What did your mother mean by that?”
“I think she was speaking of my father. She said she loved him fiercely, but knew when the time came for him to leave, she wouldn’t go with him.”
“What happened?” Letty Sue turned to face him fully, eager to hear about Chase’s family, his past.
“She often spoke of my father, but never with much detail, really. She’d tell me I had his honor and strength. She found him near dead in Indian Territory one winter. He’d been bushwhacked and left to die. She brought him home and nursed him in her lodge. They fell in love and were married in the eyes of the Cheyenne. When he fully recovered, he had to head back to his own life. His white life. Snow Cloud knew she could never live in the white world. She loved the tribe and her heritage too much and knew she’d never fit in anywhere but with the Cheyenne. He pleaded with her for months, delayed his leaving, but finally she made it clear it was for the best. I know it cost my mother her heart to let him go, but she knew it was the only way. He couldn’t stay and she couldn’t leave.”
“What about you?”
“He didn’t know about me. He’d left long before I was born.”
“You never had a father, then?”
“No, but my grandfather and I were very close. At night, I’d visit him. He was a master storyteller. I learned all the Cheyenne legends from him. He and Snow Cloud were enough for me.”
“We both grew up without fathers,” she said sadly.
“We had strong mothers.”
They seemed to have that in common, but their differences more than made up for what they mutually shared.
Yet Letty Sue felt a kinship with him now, grateful he’d shared this part of his past with her. He’d been hurt in many ways, had lost ones closest to him. Impulsively, she reached out to touch his arm. “Chase…”
“Come on, Letty Sue,” he said, standing abruptly. He leaned over to help her up. “We should get back.”
Letty Sue sighed wearily and took the hand he offered. She knew he’d not be offering anything more.
Chapter Nine
C
hase stood on the sidelines with Sam, watching the children’s relay races. Both Letty Sue and Sally were on the front lines, cheering their assigned teams on. Both women had volunteered to help with the games and hand out the ribbons to the winners.
“How’s the shoulder, Sam?”
Sam rubbed his left shoulder. “Better after Sally tended to it. She rubbed some liniment on and patched me up real good.”
“I heard a snake crossed your path.”
“Yeah, usually I’m watching out, but I was anxious to get to the festivities. I guess my mind wasn’t much on where I was going. That old diamondback put a fright into Willy. Never saw that cow pony get so doggone jiggled. It caught me off guard, and when Willy jolted, I flew off and landed flat out on my shoulder. It’s gonna be stiff for a while, I imagine.”
“You might just have to get Sally to rub that liniment on it again,” Chase said, teasing.
Sam peered over at the young woman with the
blond curls. He chuckled. “Now that ain’t a half-bad idea.”
Chase grinned and his gaze followed the women, but the one that caught his eye, the one who always seemed to get into his sights, the one who regularly captured his attention, was Letty Sue. Both women were pretty, Sally with her wheat-colored hair, expressive eyes and slender frame, but dammit if Letty Sue didn’t outshine her and every other woman here.
“You know, you missed a real fine meal.”
“I apologized to Letty Sue,” Sam said. “I guess she sort of expected me to be there.”
Chase nodded, taking his eyes off Letty Sue. Instead, he concentrated on the races. “She did.”
“But I heard some ranch foreman bid the highest ever for her basket. Geez, Chase. Ten dollars? That’s gonna bust me next year. What got into your head? Not that Letty Sue ain’t worth it, but
ten dollars?
”
Chase took off his hat to scratch his head. “Yeah, I know. Damn fool thing to do. But this old dough puncher insulted her with a two-bit bid.”
“And you laid down a week’s wage because of it?”
Chase shook his head. “At least it was the best meal I’ve had in a while.”
“That’s something,” Sam agreed, then his mouth split into a grin. “I heard Emma Mayfield cooked it. Letty Sue said her lunch flew off the wagon when it hit a hole in the road. The whole thing dumped onto the ground. Guess that was sorta lucky on your part.”
“Guess so. Letty Sue was mad about it.”
“Mad at you, you mean.”
“That’s nothing new, Sam. That woman and me, we don’t see eye to eye on anything.” Chase slapped Sam on the back, making sure not to injure his sore side. “Now that you’re here, you can spend the rest of the day with her.”
Sam’s gaze darted directly to Sally, who was busy pinning red ribbons on the winners of a three-man relay race. “Uh, Chase… I was sorta gonna spend some time with Sally, if you don’t mind. I was hoping you’d see Letty Sue home tonight. I promised Sally I’d escort her home later, you know, as a thank-you for her helping me today.”
“That so?”
“Do you mind?”
It meant spending more time with Letty Sue. Something he didn’t want to do, especially not after that talk he’d had with her earlier. Being honest with himself, he admitted it had been nice sharing bits of his Cheyenne life with her. He’d not spoken about his mother and father to anyone, really, and Letty Sue seemed to understand. She hadn’t made judgments, but simply listened, seeming truly interested. He’d begun to feel something akin to friendship with her, but he wouldn’t fool himself into believing they could be friends.
Chase had never had a woman friend, much less one as beautiful and tempting as Letty Sue.
He’d best just stick to his original plan of keeping his distance. But he wouldn’t refuse Sam the favor,
even if that favor meant having to spend the rest of the day with Letty Sue. “Sally’s a nice girl, Sam.”
“I’m just now learning that,” Sam said. “She’s real sweet.”
Chase agreed, keeping his reluctance to himself. “I’ll see Letty Sue home tonight. You go on and court Sally.”
“Court her?” Sam’s forehead wrinkled.
Chase laughed. “Sam, that’s what you’re doing, isn’t it?”
“Well, I suppose. She is nice…and real pretty.”
“Sweet, too,” Chase said, repeating Sam’s words. “Go on and have fun.”
Sam took one more look at Sally. “Appreciate it, Chase. Hope you and Letty Sue manage to have a pleasant evening.”
Doubtful, Chase thought. Every time he thought about her, it was as if he was pushing her away with one hand and pulling her in with the other. “I think we can manage that,” he answered tightly.
“Chase told you he had a woman in Abilene?” Sally asked, her interest piqued. They sat on a picnic bench folding napkins. The festivities had died down some. Most of the younger children had been taken home; now just the dance was left. Letty Sue didn’t feel much like kicking up her heels.
And she wished she hadn’t spoken about Chase to Sally. Letty Sue wanted to put thoughts of him aside. And now Sally had nothing but questions. “She hurt him real bad. He didn’t have kind words to say about
her.” She didn’t add, “And he thinks I’m just like her.” The pain of his silent comparison was still with her. Chase didn’t hold her in high regard. He probably didn’t much like her at all. But he had to be civil to her because of Joellen and his job at the Double J.
Sally’s green eyes gleamed. “Any man who’d bid ten dollars on your basket can’t still be hankering for another woman. Letty Sue, why, nearly the entire town’s talking about how he bid so high for you. It means something. You and him, out on the ranch. No chaperons.”
“
He’s
my chaperon. He’s forever telling me where I can go, whom I can see, what to do, what not to do. I swear, he treats me like a child, Sally.” Except when he took her into his arms and showed her his passion— Letty Sue hadn’t felt like a child then. Chase made her feel like a real woman.
“I think there’s more to it than that, Letty Sue.” With the napkins folded, they stood and went to different ends of the picnic table. Lifting the tablecloth easily, they brought the points together. Letty Sue dropped her end and Sally finished squaring off the folds.
“I really don’t want to think about him anymore today.”
Sally chuckled then and peered over Letty Sue’s shoulder. “Well, doesn’t look like you’re going to have much choice. Here he comes now, with Sam.”
Letty Sue watched Sam twirl Sally around the dance area. The picnic tables had been moved to form
a large circle, much like a wagon train, so that the center arena could be used as a prairie grass dance floor. Nobody minded. It was far too lovely an evening to be indoors, anyway. In an hour, dusk would settle on the land.
A fiddler played a lively tune, and Sally, with skirts swishing, laughed at something Sam had said. They looked good together, happy. Letty Sue smiled, glad that her friend was having a good time.
“Care to dance, Miss Letty Sue?” Toby asked.
Letty Sue had to let the ranch hand down gently. She cast him a sweet smile. “I’m so tired, Toby, my feet refuse to move. I’m sorry.”
“That’s all right. Maybe next time, then.” Double J’s youngest employee sauntered off.
“You really don’t feel like dancing, do you, Letty Sue?” Chase came up to stand next to her. He handed her a glass of punch. “That’s about the fifth man you refused.”
“Normally, I love dancing. Just not tonight,” she said, taking a small sip of the punch. Chase hadn’t asked for a dance. Not that she’d have danced with him, but he didn’t even have the courtesy to ask her. “We can leave anytime you’re ready.”
He nodded. “I’ve got the wagon all packed up.” He took her cup and placed it on the table. “Let’s go.”
Letty Sue waved her goodbyes to Sam and Sally, and had turned to leave with Chase when she nearly collided into the chest of Sheriff Singleton. He made a quick apology, then turned his attention to Chase.
His face was solemn, as were the faces of two other men, lawmen, whom she didn’t recognize.
“Chase Wheeler, I believe you know Sheriff Mercer from Abilene, and this is Deputy Bodine. They, uh, they came here to speak with you.”
The three men encircled Chase, leaving her out. She stood there listening, a sense of dread creeping up her spine.
“What’s this all about?” Chase asked, looking each man straight in the eye.
Sheriff Mercer stepped forward. “I’ve got some questions for you. We can do it here or back at the jail.”
“Here is fine,” Chase said.
“Okay,” he said, “did you work for Seth Johnston over the past years?”
“You know I did, Sheriff. You’ve been to his ranch. You’ve seen me. I worked there for ten years.”
“And were you involved with his stepdaughter, Marabella Donat?”
Chase’s lips thinned to one grim line. “Now, that you’re going to have to ask her yourself.”