After Sundown by Shelly Thacker

Author:Shelly Thacker
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Historical Romance, Colorado, Western Romance
Publisher: Summit Avenue Books
Published: 2013-07-25T14:47:35+00:00

Chapter 12

Lucas remained still as he opened his eyes just a bit, his head hurting as if some persistent railroad worker were pounding a spike into him. He lay on his back beneath the quilt, blinking in the lamplight, realizing two things at once. First, he was alone in the bed.

Second, he could smell hot bean soup. And coffee and some kind of frybread. His stomach growled at the warm, mingling aromas. When he recovered from his surprise enough to lift his head—cautiously, wincing—and look around, he discovered that Annie had been up for some time.

Apparently she had been busy while he was still asleep: She had not only brought in more wood for the fire, which was crackling in the stove, and made a meal, she had straightened the place up a bit, cleaned away some of the dust, arranged all the chairs neatly around the table in the corner, made everything tidy.

At the moment, she sat at the table with her back to him, wearing her plain brown dress, the food spread out around her: iron frypan, a metal coffeepot, the tin cup and plate from his saddlebag. Across from her sat another cup and plate she must have found somewhere in the dugout.

She had set two places. Had made him breakfast.

Lucas rested his head back against the mattress, regarding her in silent surprise for a moment. He never would have guessed that she might know how to cook—never mind be able to make something out of the few ingredients they had on hand. It only drove home what he’d been brooding about—or rather, trying not to brood about—since he’d opened that letter from the Denver orphanage.

Though he’d spent weeks hunting this woman down and almost a month in her company, the truth was he knew damn little about her.

Lucas sat up, groaning softly at the pain in his temple, and she turned toward him.

“Good morning,” she said, a bit hesitantly. “How are you feeling?”

He considered that question for a moment, gingerly probing his bandaged temple. His head still ached, and his throat was parched with thirst, but the dizziness was gone. “Better.” A good night’s sleep had been exactly what he’d needed. “What time is it?”

“Almost midday, I think.”

Lucas rubbed his eyes. A good night and half a day’s sleep. He moved to sit on the edge of the bed and looked up.

Their gazes met and held for a moment, until she glanced away, a hint of dusky color in her cheeks.

He grabbed his shirt from the bedpost, studying her by the lantern’s glow. She had tamed her curls into a long, thick braid that hung down the back of her chair, the end tied with a strip of cloth from her petticoat—a match for the one still knotted around his head. She looked sweet, almost shy, sitting there so quietly, the light giving her dark eyes that languid look beneath the fringe of her lashes...

Lucas pulled his shirt on and started buttoning it.

He’d kept his promise last night.

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