September Rain by Kane Mallory

Author:Kane, Mallory [Kane, Mallory]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: romance historical intrigue frontier
Published: 2011-12-08T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FIVE

Hallie stared at the empty doorway. “Stubborn man,” she muttered, trying for anger, but finding inside herself only sympathy and a kind of amazement at the strength he carried within him. He’d been in awful pain, but something, she supposed his pride, had kept him going.

Standing so close to him had made her realize just how tall he was. His body was like a young tree, long and lean and supple. With luck, his bones were as strong and yielding as a healthy young tree too, and he’d mend quickly.

She was struck by how young he was. The lines in his face were lines of pain and sadness, not of age. How handsome he must have been when he was married and happy. A lump rose in her throat. What was it about this silent man that drew her so? It must be just because he saved her life. Deep in her heart, though, Hallie knew it was more. She had seen him maybe four times in two years, but it seemed each time his image, his essence had been etched more indelibly on her soul.

She swallowed against the tightness in her throat and folded her arms as the door opened and he stepped inside. His cheeks were pink with cold and she could see him shivering.

“So, Jacob, are you feeling better now?” she asked.

He didn’t even favor her with a glance as he made his slow, painful way back to the bed.

“I don’t suppose you’d let me help you change clothes before you lie down? Your breeches are pretty dirty.”

He glared at her, then turned to a cedar chest Hallie hadn’t noticed before. He moved toward it.

“Wait a minute,” she said. “You’ll never bend down enough to get to the chest, and if you do, you’ll never get up. I don’t think I can lift you into bed.” She walked over beside him, feeling rather than seeing him give in.

Crouching beside the chest, she opened it, and almost cried when she saw the contents. Besides another pair of breeches, there was some soft fabric which was obviously something of his wife’s, a set of fine dishes, and several books.

Hallie couldn’t resist turning a couple of them over. A volume of Shakespeare, and Jane Eyre. They must have belonged to his wife. She wanted to look at the others, but she had pried enough. She grabbed the breeches and closed the chest, her heart heavy and her eyes burning.

“Here,” she said, not looking at him. “I’ll cover the soup and dry the dishes while you change.”

As hard as she tried, she couldn’t keep herself from stealing a glance. In the dim lamplight, she couldn’t see much, but what she did see confirmed what she’d noticed earlier. Jacob Chandler was young, he was vibrant and healthy, and he was a virile man.

She closed her eyes quickly and turned her head.

Oh dear. What was she doing? She was a spinster, an old maid. The kinds of thoughts she was having were totally inappropriate, one might even say unnatural.

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