Shades of Honor (21 page)

The look of wonder that crossed Kyle's face was an expression Evelyn had never before witnessed on him. His big shoulders and solid neck looked so out of place with little arms wrapped around them that Evelyn was transfixed. But when he closed his eyes and pressed a kiss to Rebecca's curls, it wrenched her heart and made her eyes tear.

As though Kyle suddenly realized what he was doing, he stood up and backed away. Evelyn held out a hand, wanting to keep that tender side of Kyle from slipping away, but he didn’t reach back.

“Did I ever tell you about the snake that got after me when I was your dad's age?” William asked Rebecca. She hiccupped and shook her head. “It was an old hoop snake. Either of you girls ever heard of a hoop snake?” They both shook their heads. “Well, come over here and I'll tell you a story about a real snake. That black snake was just being friendly with you. It's those nasty hoop snakes that you
gotta
look out for.”

Helen and Rebecca knelt on the floor in front of William's chair, hands on knees, gazing up in anticipation. Evelyn leaned against the railing beside Kyle while Radford took a seat by her father.

“Those old hoop snakes are poisonous and if they get you, well, you could swell right up until you burst.”

“Really?” Rebecca asked, obviously displeased.

“Do they have teeth?” Helen asked.

“Can't say. I do know they bite their own tail and roll where they want to go. Looks just like a big ole buggy hoop, so if you ever see one you'd better hightail it out of there.”

“I will,” Rebecca promised, as if taking a solemn oath.

“I had to run from one myself when I was a little older than you. I was helping my pa build a new shed, but we ran out of wood so he made me dig taters for the day. While I was in the field, I heard a noise and what do you suppose I saw rolling right at me?”

“A hoop snake!” both girls supplied in unison, bouncing on their knees in suspense.

“That's right. I didn't have time to run so I tried to defend myself with the ash handle of my potato hook. That darn snake knocked it right out of my hand with its tail. I’ll tell you, I never ran so fast in all my life. I stayed clear of there for the rest of the day, but my pa made me go back and get that doggone potato hook the next morning. We were expecting rain and he said it'd be ruined if it got wet. I looked all over for that blasted hook, then I stopped and scratched my head. There was a huge chunk of wood laying in the middle of the garden that hadn't been there before, and after I took me a good look, I realized it was the potato hook. Must be that darn snake stuck its poison in that handle and blew it up to the size of a tree.”

“It did?” Rebecca asked. “Did your daddy yell at you about the '
tato
hook?”

Evelyn saw her father's lips twitch, but he managed to keep a straight face. “No, he hitched up the wagon and took that chunk of wood to the mill and had it cut up for our shed.”

“Did
Unco
Kyle cut it up for you?” Rebecca asked, her face beaming.

This time it was Kyle who laughed and William continued with a chuckle. “No,
sweetpea
. Your uncle Kyle wasn't born yet, so someone else had to do it. Anyhow, we took that lumber and finished off our shed. But it got too dark for us to put the shingles on the roof so we had to wait until the next morning. But guess what happened?” he asked mysteriously, and both girls leaned closer.

“It had stormed all night and soaked everything for miles. When the water went down, I walked out back and looked at our shed. I blinked my eyes,
thinkin
’ I was still
sleepin
’ until my pa came out behind me and cursed up a blue streak. You see, the rain had washed the snake's poison out of the wood and all we had left of our shed by morning was tiny pieces of wood that looked just like toothpicks.”

“That's a fib, Grandpa!” Rebecca said, slapping at his pants leg and giggling.

He hooted and held out his hand. “I know it is, but come up here and give me a kiss anyhow.” To Evelyn’s amazement, Rebecca climbed onto his lap and squeezed his neck.

“You tell good stories, Grandpa.”

“Well, you're a good listener,
sweetpea
, and it makes Grandpa happy to share his silly tales with you.” He tickled her side and made room for Helen who wasn’t about to be left out. “I hope you're not going to let those snakes scare you anymore.”

Rebecca shook her head. “Nope! I'll just get
Unco
Kyle to chase them away!”

Evelyn glanced at Kyle, who was wearing such a warm expression, that for a moment, she knew her old friend still existed somewhere beneath his business armor. Yet, even if she could find him again, Evelyn wondered if it would be enough now that she knew what passion felt like.

“Radford!” Evelyn yelled, rushing into Radford’s bedroom. She grabbed his shoulder and shook him. “Wake up! Papa needs a doctor.”

He shot up in bed, his gaze darting around the room as though expecting something to fly at him from a darkened corner. “Where are they?” he panted.

Evelyn yanked his hand to jar him from the dark world that made his eyes wild. “Papa's had an attack. I need you to get the doctor.”

Radford stared at her for two full seconds, then shook the remnants of sleep from his head. “Where is he?” he asked, his voice gruff with sleep as he leapt from bed. Oblivious to his nudity, he yanked on his trousers and stepped barefoot into his boots, tying his laces with quick jerks.

They rushed across the hall to her father’s room where Radford checked her father’s breathing and pulse. “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he said, then dashed from the room.

 
Evelyn turned up the lantern then held her father’s cool, frail hand. “Papa?”

He rolled his head toward her. His face was sagging on one side, as though his muscles had given up their job of holding skin to his face. “Why
arn
’ you in bed, pixie?” he asked, his speech slurred, his eyes glassy.

 
He used to ask Evelyn that same question years ago when he'd find her playing in her bedroom after she was supposed to have been asleep. Instead of chastising, he'd tuck her in bed with her doll and kiss them both good night.

Evelyn smoothed her hand across her father’s chest. “It's my turn to tuck you in, Papa. Rest now. I'll be right here.”

It seemed she sat at his bedside, holding his hand, for hours before Radford came back with Doc Finlay. The doctor greeted her briefly, then examined her father in silence. When he finished, he rolled his shoulders and rubbed his neck. “He’s coherent and responsive, but your father is very weak. Providing there isn’t another attack, he’ll recover. I’ll check back tomorrow to see how he’s coming along.”

Radford took the doctor back to town and Evelyn sat in the chair next to her father's bed, holding his hand while he slept. Occasionally she would place her palm near his mouth to check his breathing. When fatigue finally claimed her, she rested her head against the side of the chair and laid her hand upon his chest. The steady beat of his heart reassured her and she closed her eyes.

For three days she sat with him, unwilling to leave his side. Radford spent his time between the barn and the sickroom while Kyle, Duke, and Boyd took turns helping in the livery and coming to visit in the evenings.

On the third night, Kyle poked his head into the room. “How's he doing?”

Evelyn glanced at her sleeping father. “He's sick to his stomach today.”

“You don't look so well yourself.” Kyle entered the room and pulled her into his arms, rubbing his palm across her back. “Can I do anything?”

Evelyn rested her cheek against his thick chest, thinking she could close her eyes and fall asleep right there. “You're doing enough in the livery. I really appreciate that, Kyle. Be sure to thank Boyd and Duke for me and tell them I owe them each a pie when I get my kitchen back from your mother.”

“So she's chased you out, has she?”

Evelyn lifted her head and smiled. “She's been wonderful. Rebecca loves the games they’ve been playing. Without your mother, we would have all starved over the past few days.”

“Well, she’s downstairs right now planning our wedding meal, which is only three weeks away in case you’ve forgotten.”

Evelyn met his eyes. “I know, but we’ll have to wait if Papa’s not better soon.”

“Then make sure you take good care of him. Now that you’ve learned about monkeyshines, I’m eager for our wedding night,” he said, pulling her against him.

“Are you
fonnlin
’ my daughter?”

Embarrassed to be caught in Kyle’s arms, yet pleased to hear the strength returning to her father’s voice, Evelyn hurried to his side.

Kyle joined them and laid his hand over William’s. “How you doing?”

“Shitty.”

“Well, before you know it you'll be tipping a horn with me at your daughter’s wedding.”

William smiled weakly. “
Soun’s
good. Now quit
molestin
’ her while I've got my eyes closed.”

“Yes, sir.” Kyle grinned and gave him a squeeze on the shoulder. He cupped Evelyn's chin and gave her a quick kiss. “I'll see you tomorrow,” he said, then left the house.

Later that night, Evelyn’s father grew pale and started heaving, his body wracked with tremors. Panicked, Evelyn sent Radford for Doc Finlay again. She paced the bedroom with growing anxiety until they arrived. After long minutes of silent examination the doctor shook his head and said her father was suffering with influenza and shouldn’t be left alone in his already weakened condition.

Frightened by the added threat, Evelyn and Radford nursed her father for two days, covering him with extra blankets when his teeth chattered from chills, wiping his face with cool cloths when he burned with fever, holding a pan when he was sick and giving him water when he could keep it down.

On the third bone-weary night, Evelyn and Radford sat with the bed between them, the lantern casting a soft golden glow upon their shoulders and across the blankets. Radford's long fingers rested on the mattress inches from hers and Evelyn thought how natural it would be to reach over and link her fingers with his. She needed his strength. No one would know.

“What are you thinking?” Radford asked quietly, his eyes probing hers.

“I was...feeling relieved that Papa's resting.”

He shook his head slowly, his shadowed cheeks alternately catching the lantern glow. “No you weren’t.”

Tension buzzed around them while he made a slow study of her face. His eyes darkened and her pulse quickened, but she was unable to look away from his masculine features and tired eyes. Something in Radford's expression beckoned her closer, but the strain in his shoulders sent currents of warning racing through her body.

With slow purpose, he planted both feet on the floor, then unfolded his long body until he was standing. Evelyn was spellbound by the magnitude of emotion she saw in his eyes. He moved around the bed and Evelyn’s breath caught in her throat when he stopped beside her.

He lifted his hand to her cheek, but didn’t touch her. Instead he stepped away and spoke hoarsely over his shoulder. “I need air.”

 
 
o0o

Radford stood on the balcony trying to talk himself out of running. He was losing the battle. It wasn't just the physical wanting that tormented him. It was the deeper need to know Evelyn, to learn what she liked or loved. What was her favorite time of day for a horseback ride? Did she enjoy the rhythmic chirping of night peepers better than the bright sound of morning robins? Was there a special dream or hope that lay within that tender heart of hers? Was it something he could give her?

And what about Kyle? What did Radford owe him? Loyalty and trust for certain, but to what extent? Was Radford to forfeit his own happiness, his life, for Kyle? Or Rebecca’s happiness? Perhaps not, but neither would he steal that very thing from his brother.

With a low, agonized groan, Radford turned his face to the breeze. “I can't do it!” he said to the night. “I can't.”

Unwilling to torment himself further, Radford returned to William's room, annoyed to find Evelyn sleeping in that damned chair again. How many nights now had he told her to go to bed, that he would sit with William? Yet here she was, stubbornly asleep with her temple against the side of the chair, her braid falling across her shoulder and curling in her lap.

Radford shook her gently, but she didn't stir. He tried more insistently and still she slept, unaware of his struggle not to kiss her parted lips. Dark lashes fanned her cheeks and were surrounded by purple smudges of exhaustion. Pity welled inside him and he knelt down, slipped his arms beneath her legs and shoulders, and lifted her into his arms.

Evelyn nestled her face in his neck, but her arms slackened in fatigue and fell to her side as she drifted off again. Radford placed her on the bed then pulled the sheet over her, warning himself to get the hell out of her room. But he stayed and studied the arch of her eyebrows, the shape of her mouth, her regal cheekbones and pretty nose. He cupped her jaw and rubbed his thumb lightly across her lips. Unable to help himself, Radford leaned over and placed a reverent kiss upon the mole above her mouth.