At this rate, he’d be dead within a matter of days. Wes shook the water from his head and laughed. Maybe that was why Miss Victoria had had so many husbands, if Allie was anything like her grandmother. He’d fought all day in battle and not felt this tired, or this close to heaven.
With each of their matings, a wildness grew stronger within Allie. He’d heard that women were told to lie still and endure a husband’s needs. Allie had obviously missed such a lecture. She was an active participant, wanting to know and explore. With each loving, a part of her fear vaporized until the strong woman she’d been meant to be shone through.
Wes leaned back and let the cold water rush over him. He’d found in Allie something else besides war to make him feel totally alive. He found an equal inside the frightened creature he’d thought to save. He might have delivered her from terror, but she ransomed him from a life of never feeling anything too deeply. She brought him back to life after layers of war had numbed him.
Thinking about her made a longing grow within him. He climbed from the river and wrapped himself in a blanket, suddenly in a hurry to be back by her side.
Clouds promising rain blackened the night. On his way back to the cave, he checked the animals, making sure they were beneath the cover of trees in case a storm came.
When he reached the chamber deep within, Allie lay curled in a blanket, sound asleep. Wes warmed himself by the fire before lying beside her. It didn’t matter that this was probably one of the coldest, dampest, hardest beds he’d ever slept in. Allie made it perfect.
‘‘I love you,’’ he whispered into her hair. ‘‘I love you more than I’ve ever loved anything or anyone in my life.’’ He had to say the words aloud, even if only for his ears. His love for her was greater than he thought himself capable of feeling.
As Allie slept, Wes listened to the distant drum of the rain. Occasionally, a few drops would slip through the crack in the roof of the cave and sizzle into the fire. The wind moved through the cavern in a whisper, chilling whatever part of him didn’t face the flames. He pulled another blanket over them both, but sleep eluded him.
Sometime after a gray dawn, Wes came to a conclusion. He wanted Allie as his wife forever. Not until she was safe or until she found a home. He wanted her home to be with him. He wanted to live with her every day of the life he had left. Like Maxwell and Victoria, he wanted to be buried next to her in a family plot their grandchildren would visit.
But he had nothing to offer her other than a dugout on a ranch without cattle. She deserved more. Though the frame of a fine house had been started, the wood would be rotted before he had enough money to finish building. All he’d ever been a success at in life was being a soldier, and the war was over.
Wes thought of the map. The Goliad gold. He was within a day’s ride of it. He could leave Allie and be back before she had time to miss him.
If he told her of his plan, she would want to follow, and Wes had no idea what he might encounter. She would be safer here in her cave. He’d bring in enough firewood to last a week and leave her the supplies.
But he couldn’t leave Allie without her knowing he’d be back. She had to understand that last night was the beginning, not the end. A note might work, but he wasn’t sure she could read.
Wes reached for his trousers. As he dressed, he pulled the compass his father had given him from his pocket. Turning over the largest of her baskets, he placed the compass on top. She would have no trouble seeing it when she woke up. She’d know he’d be back. He’d told her he never left his compass. She would know, and she’d wait.
He buttoned his coat and slipped from the chamber, leaving everything he loved deep within the cavern walls.
The wind seemed stronger as he lifted his saddle and moved into the rain. ‘‘I’ll be back soon,’’ he mumbled, wishing he could have awakened her before he left. But he knew her. She had a way of talking him into seeing things her way, even when she didn’t speak at all.
Wes was just crossing the river when the wind whispered through the chamber once more, blowing the basket over and sending his compass rolling into the stack of pelts.
Allie awoke slowly, as if from a long dream. For a few minutes, she was more in her dream than in reality. The damp coldness of the cave made her shiver and reach for Wes… He was gone.
An hour later, she stood and dressed in the shadowy light of the fire. There was no need to check the cave entrance. She knew his saddle would not be there. He’d been a man of his word. He said he would take her to the cave if she asked. He never said he would stay.
Allie rolled up the buffalo hide and placed it atop the stack of pelts. Light from the tiny crack in the top of the cavern told her it was day, but clouds prevented any sunbeams. She’d learned years ago to judge the time by the thin sliver of light moving across her room while the day aged.
Walking to the cave opening, she looked out at the rain. Wes hadn’t even waited for the storm to clear.
She thought of all the things she’d been called in her life. Wild, savage, creature, a throwaway woman. All names that spoke of her lack of value. But, for a few days, he’d called her darling. He’d held her with cherishing arms. And now his night of lovemaking would have to last her a lifetime.
Part of her wanted to scream,Let him go. She didn’t need him, she didn’t need anyone. She proved that when she walked away from Victoria’s ranch. And last night she proved she wasn’t afraid.
Her life had come full circle from being alone before her capture to being alone now. Only she had changed. Somehow amidst all the nightmares and loving, she’d grown. She’d learned who she was, and who she wanted.
‘‘Wes,’’ she whispered, as if merely voicing his name could bring him back. She wanted the man who’d risked his life to save her from the cage and who’d married her to keep her from harm’s way. She needed the man whose scar added character to his face, whose rough hands could touch her so gently.
Allie lifted her chin. And… she would have the man who held her priceless in his eyes.
Her fingers closed into fists. She would have him if she had to track him down and beat sense into him. He was her husband, the only one she would ever have. He might think his worth depended on how much he owned, but she’d prove him wrong. His value lay in the way he kept his word, the way he protected her with his life,the way he loved her with his heart wide open. Words hadn’t told her he loved her; his actions had.
Allie lifted the saddle. She knew he’d gone after the gold he thought was at a place called Goliad. And without her, he’d probably get himself killed.
She’d never wanted anything in her life but to survive. Until now. She wanted Wes. She wanted him all the way to her toes, and she planned to fight for what she wanted.
Marching through the mud, half dragging the saddle, Allie formed her plan. Vincent had said the mission was in sight of the river. Well, she’d ride downstream until she saw it. If Wes wasn’t there, she’d come back to her cave and think of another plan. But one way or the other, Wes would be her husband.
It took her almost an hour to saddle the horse and move all the supplies back into her chamber. At first she tied the mule, then changed her mind for fear he might be attacked by wolves. The mule would have to go along with her.
She dressed in her leathers, knowing they’d keep her warmer in the rain and be easier to move in. The boots Nichole had given her went well with her leggings. Finally, she braided her hair in one long chain and tied it with a leather strap.
When she left her cave, she looked more Comanche than the only grandchild of Victoria Catlin.
Deep into the night, Allie finally saw the outline of the mission. The tall stone buildings pointed toward the night sky in a silent stand against all time. Several dwellings surrounded it, but the hour was late, and any fires within the houses were low.
She left her horse and the mule at the river and walked slowly toward the mission. Her leather made no sound as she neared. In a few hours it would be dawn. If Wes were here, he’d wait until morning to leave.
Slowly, she recognized the outline of a man leaning against the wall outside the mission. His hat was low, his arms and legs crossed over a slender body with wide shoulders. She felt a sadness, a sense of loss in the way he stood.Wes. Whatever he’d found hadn’t been a treasure.
She wasn’t sure what he’d do when he saw her. Or even if he’d be glad she came, but she had to try. If he didn’t want her, he’d have to tell her to her face, not disappear from her life.
Allie moved in front of him and widened her stance, preparing for whatever happened.
