Page 56 of A Steadfast Heart
Half an hour later, he watched through the window as Ed and Nick rode out to round up the bull and find Phantom. They’d meet up with Isaac, and the three of them should be able to get the job done, no matter how cantankerous the bull was feeling. Jo had gone upstairs to rest. Kaitlyn stopped beside him, the lavender scent of her soap comforting him.
“Thought you might like this. It’s been a rough day.” Her hand shook, and the coffee nearly sloshed from the mug.
He took it from her, then looked her over. Her face was pale, her eyes bright. She seemed to be moving smoothly, but there was a rip in her sleeve. It could have so easily been her body that was ripped. He pointed to her arm. “Is that from today?”
She glanced down. “I hadn’t noticed. I must have done it when I climbed the fence.”
He put his cup down on the prep table and took her arm in his hand. It felt cold and trembled in his grip. He rubbed it, trying to give her some of his warmth. A bit of blood had soaked through her sleeve. He rolled it up to her elbow and examined the scrape. “Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?”
“A scrape hardly counts.” Her voice was low and unsteady.
“Please, let me check it.” He held her gaze until she finally looked away, blushing. But she didn’t pull away from him. He found her lavender soap and dipped it in the basin of water she’d been using for Jo. He rubbed it between his hands, its fragrance strong and calm. It suited her.
He ran his soapy hands over her scrape, then rinsed it. Her skin was so soft beneath his fingers. Warmth flooded him. Did she feel it too? “Any other damage?” he murmured.
She shook her head, not meeting his eyes.
She could have been killed right before his eyes. His eyes squeezed shut as the thought echoed through his mind and landed in his heart. He might never have seen her again. Never have held her again. He pulled her into his arms. “I thought my heart would stop when you jumped into that pen.” His voice sounded hoarse to his own ears.
“I knew you’d get there in time.”
Warmth raced through his body, and his arms tightened around her.I knew you’d get therein time. She trusted him, when she’d never had experience at trusting anyone.
Even when he’d come so very close to failing.
He breathed in her lavender scent, then slowly released her. “Next time, don’t trust me so much.”
Except there’d better never be a next time. His heart wouldn’t survive it.
Chapter13
They all know.
Kaitlyn glanced around the churchyard. Two women whispered to each other behind their hands. Their arms dropped to their sides, and they blushed before they looked away. Michael’s telegram had arrived a week ago, and the McGraws seemed to be the most popular topic of conversation at church today.
Kaitlyn’s cheeks heated. She’d hoped to never live this scene again, but Drew had said it would be good to attend church together and stay for the social time afterward. They’d even brought Jo, despite yesterday’s accident.
Didn’t he know that truth never interfered with people sharing a salacious story?
Of course he did. The stories must have flown when his wife left him.
Tillie ran up, her shoes scraping against the pebbles. “I miss-ed you.” She grabbed Kaitlyn’s hand and swung it a couple of times. “Can we play one, two, three?”
Kaitlyn smiled. Tillie loved being swung between two adults when they hit three. “Maybe later, Tillie. I need someone to hold your other hand, right?”
“Okay, later. Promise?”
“I promise.”
Tillie ran back to play with her friends. Kaitlyn glanced around the churchyard and found Drew standing among a group of men but watching her. One side of his mouth quirked up—his version of a comforting smile. Her chest lightened.
Gossip was still gossip, but facing it with family beside her made all the difference in the world.
Danna and Merritt stopped next to her, Danna’s skirt whipping around her legs from her long strides.
Merritt tipped her head with a teasing smile. “Kaitlyn, did my cousin just smile at you? I’d almost forgotten what his smile looked like.”
Kaitlyn’s cheeks warmed. She’d come to know Drew’s cousin, the local schoolteacher, over the past weeks. She liked Merritt. Even her teasing. “He was smiling at Tillie.”
