Magic in Her Eyes by Donna Dalton

Author:Donna Dalton [Dalton, Donna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: romance, historical, western, sensual
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Published: 2017-06-14T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Ten

Preston loaded the last of the luggage onto the wagon—two trunks, four satchels, and a small crate of toys. The Seaton House evacuees had amassed quite a collection during their stay at the fort. Folks had been generous…well, up until the incident at the mess hall. Thanks to Major Allen, all that ugliness about witches and burnings at the stake was water under the bridge, and with proper diligence, would never surface again.

The children watched from the jailhouse steps. Living in less than optimal conditions didn’t appear to have caused them too much hardship. Although subdued, they looked healthy and well fed. They could handle being separated from each other for a few months. They were a lot stronger than Meredith gave them credit for.

Despite being forced into their unfamiliar world, he was glad for the experience. Children weren’t so bad. They were just miniature recruits, requiring patience and guidance—more of the former than the later. Their unfiltered outlook on life made him look forward to having his own children. He might not be the best father in the world, but with Meredith by his side, he would damn sure try.

Meredith would be a perfect mother. What he once considered willfulness, he now knew to be uncompromising protectiveness. After the dust settled, he would try again to convince her to let him call on her. That night in his tent, he’d let lust overpower his good sense. He would take things slower, court her as she deserved, and when the time was right, ask her to be his wife. He wasn’t going to let her slip away. Not while he had a chance at something wonderful.

She walked toward the wagon, herding the children ahead of her. Her eyes were sad and needful, a wounded bird seeking shelter. He would be her refuge.

“Ready to go?” he asked.

She sighed and nodded. “I suppose so.”

“Everything will work out just fine. Have a little faith.”

Her lips turned up in a weak attempt at a smile. “You sound like Aunt Mildred.”

He wanted to kiss away her bleakness. With the orphans looking on, he cupped her elbow instead. “She would want you to be strong. For the children…and for yourself.”

“You’re right; she would want that.” She motioned to the wagon. “Go on, children, get in. We don’t want to hold up Lieutenant Booth any longer than necessary.”

As the children lined up to board the wagon, she glanced at the jailhouse. Her pretty mouth dipped into a frown. “Where is Robbie? I sent him to get Bessy. He should have returned by now.”

Why wasn’t he surprised? “I’ll go get the boy,” he said.

For all Meredith’s loving goodness, she just didn’t have the firm hand needed to guide young boys into manhood. He’d do his best to fill that void during the time he had left at Fort Dent, though as an only child and tutored at home, he didn’t have any real experience to draw on. He’d just have to rely on the leadership training drilled into him at West Point.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.