was still more brick-red than gray and her broad-boned face more interesting than attractive. She was tall and full- figured and wore a simple yet fashionable violet gown.
“It’s about time you came to your senses, Dominic.” Malvina Delaney said bluntly. Her tone of voice was unsoftened by the faint Irish lilt that enriched the sound of her words. “You should have brought the girl to me when the accident happened instead of calling on Silver. I tried to send Patrick to fetch you both when he told me about this foolishness, but the boy refused to budge from Killara.”
Silver stiffened. “There was no reason to bring her here. I took very good care of her. Better than you could have done.” She lifted her chin. “Better than anyone could have done. We had no need of you.”
“Then why are you here now?” The older woman asked dryly. “Just passing through?”
Dominic jumped down from the buckboard. “Be quiet, Silver.” He faced his mother. “We had to leave Hell’s Bluff. Something happened that made it difficult for Elspeth to stay.”
Malvina’s gaze flew swiftly to Elspeth, raking her in swift appraisal. “Is she with child?”
“No.” Dominic’s reply was as curt and blunt as the question.
Malvina’s expression reflected first skepticism and then disappointment. “Patrick said you hadn’t bedded her, but I thought…” She shrugged. “She must be sicker than Patrick believed.”
“You think a woman has to be on her deathbed to escape me?” Dominic’s lips twisted. “Well, I guess a mother should know her own son.”
Malvina nodded slowly. Her eyes glittered in the sunlight. “I know you.” She took a step closer and suddenly reached out, her arms enveloping him in a fierce embrace. “Welcome home,” she said huskily. “Don’t expect us to kill the fatted calf for you. As it is, we’ve had trouble rounding up enough cattle for a trail drive this year.”
Dominic’s arms came around her and gave her an equally fierce hug. “Patrick told me Da sold the south herd and the White Sulphur land to get the money to buy my pardon. It’s a wonder you even let me set foot on the place.”
“Patrick talks too much.” Malvina took a step back, her arms falling to her sides. “It was Shamus’s decision to sell. He wanted you free to come home.” Her gaze turned to Elspeth. “She’s a little pale and puny-looking, but if she’s what you want, I guess we can work her into some kind of-”
“There seems to be a misunderstanding,” Elspeth interrupted quickly. She instinctively straightened her spine and braced herself as if to withstand a gale-force wind. Indeed, she had felt she had been buffeted by those winds since Malvina Delaney had stepped out of the shadows to meet them. The woman exuded the same forceful presence as her son and Elspeth hadn’t a doubt about her passionate devotion to him or her willingness to permit him to have whatever took his fancy. “I thank you for your hospitality, but I’ll be staying only a few days, Mrs. Delaney.”
Malvina Delaney studied her coolly, her hazel eyes narrowed. “We don’t hold with formality here. My name is Malvina, and I seldom misunderstand my boys. Dominic has gone to a parcel of trouble for you, and he’s not a man to put himself out unless he has a reason. You could do worse than to take Dominic as your man.”
“That’s enough.” Dominic shook his head resignedly as he turned away from his mother. “I know better than try to change your mind when it’s set, but if you make Elspeth uncomfortable, I’ll have to take her away again.”
Malvina’s eyes widened in surprise. “I have no intention of making the girl uncomfortable. Fact is, I’m going to make sure she’s given every consideration; I’ll even move Brianne out of the best bedroom and let Elsepth have it.” She beamed at Dominic. “Why don’t you carry her upstairs while I go get Rosa to air out the clean linens?”
Dominic gazed at her suspiciously. “We’ll have to find a place for Silver to sleep. She’ll stay with Elspeth until she’s well again.”
Something flickered in Malvina’s eyes and then was gone as her glance touched on Silver and then slid away. “She can sleep with Rising Star. Joshua and Patrick are over at Shamrock helping Cort and Sean build the new barn.”
“What happened to the old one?” Dominic asked.
Malvina smiled grimly. “Anne’s boy, William. He was sneaking a smoke in the hayloft and managed to set the place on fire. At least he got the horses out before the barn went up.”
Dominic gave a low whistle. “I’ll bet Da skinned him alive.”
“He was tanned good and proper.” Malvina nodded. “Brianne felt sorry for him and begged Shamus to let him off with nothing more than a good hiding. She’s been over at Shamrock every day trying to keep William out of mischief while the men are raising the barn.”
Silver noticed the bewildered expression on Elspeth’s face and took pity on her. “Anne is the wife of Desmond Delaney, Dominic’s older brother. Desmond wanted a place of his own and Shamus built them a cabin across the San Pedro river and gave them enough cattle to start the Shamrock spread. Then when Desmond was killed in the war, Shamus sent Cort and Sean to run Shamrock and help Anne raise William.” She smiled grimly. “God knows she needs all the help she can get to tame that young hellion.”
“Then William is your cousin?” Elspeth’s brow wrinkled thoughtfully, trying to set the branches of the large family in place in her mind.
Silver hesitated, as her gaze locked with Malvina Delaney’s. Then she smiled slowly, her defiant eyes never leaving the older woman. “Yes, William is my cousin. You should have sent me to Shamrock to help with William, old woman. Who should know better how to handle a hellion than a savage?”
Malvina’s face betrayed no reaction to Silver’s challenge. She merely said, “Sean and Cort manage pretty well on their own.” She turned to Dominic. “Shamus is in the library. He’ll want to see you when you finish settling in.”
Dominic nodded as he walked to the back of the wagon. “I want to see him too.” He wrapped the blanket around Elspeth and picked her up in his arms.
“I can walk,” she protested even as her arms slid around his shoulders and her eyes met his. Her breath was suddenly shallow and she experienced the same melting heat she had known yesterday afternoon when he had told her he wanted her. No, that was not what he had said. He had told her he wanted a woman.
His arms tightened around her. God, she mustn’t fight him now. Not now, when there were too many raw emotions tearing at his control, hovering just below the surface and waiting to break free. He turned toward the front door his mother had left ajar. “Just because you want to walk doesn’t mean it’s best for you to do so. Since I’ve met you, you haven’t shown many signs of having a well-developed sense of self-preservation. Don’t-worry, you won’t have to put up with me handling you for much longer.” Her eyes were wide and glistening with a breathless expectancy. Or was it fear? The answer seemed inconsequential to his body which responded as if she were stroking him. With an effort he pulled his gaze away from her, pushed open the door with his foot, then strode into the foyer.
Malvina gazed after them, her expression a mixture of triumph and satisfaction. “Patrick was right,” she murmured. “He wants her.”
“So?” Silver jumped down from the wagon, her eyes narrowed on Malvina’s face. “There is an entire whorehouse of women back in Hell’s Bluff who Dominic has wanted at one time or another.”
“Not like this.” Malvina didn’t take her gaze from the entrance through which Dominic had disappeared. “This one is different.” She added absently, “And, Silver, a good woman isn’t supposed to know about whorehouses, much less speak of them.”
Silver stared down at her in disbelief. She should have been accustomed to Malvina after all these years, but the old lady’s dual nature still managed to surprise her. The ruthless drive and practicality that made her a fitting match for Shamus should have been at odds with her facade of respectability. However, Malvina had managed to harness both her natural instincts and her ambitions so that they rode in tolerable, if not always comfortable, tandem. “But I am not a lady,” Silver said, softly taunting. “We all now what I am, don’t we, Malvina?”
Malvina’s gaze shifted to Silver’s face. For an instant Silver thought she saw a glimmer of compassion and the faintest trace of regret. Then her grandmother’s face was once again impassive. “Just because you’re a savage is no reason why you have to act like one. You’ve had a decent upbringing and Rising Star would be very displeased to hear you talking like a common guttersnipe.” Her lips tightened. “If you want to stay at Killara to take care of the girl, you’re going to have to watch your tongue. Brianne picks up enough bad language from her menfolks without you adding to it.”
