Kentucky Bride by Norah Hess

Author:Norah Hess [Hess, Norah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Published: 1998-06-30T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Kane pulled the stallion to a halt in the shadow of a heavily branched cedar, well out of the light spilling from the church. Dismounting, he walked to the window and looked in. His eyes went unerringly to D’lise, and he swore savagely under his breath. There were so many men, trappers and farmers, gathered round her, he marveled that she hadn’t been crushed.

And she had never looked more beautiful, more desirable. Her face glowed, her red lips smiled, and her black curls tumbled around her shoulders. A picture of another woman surrounded by eager men floated before him. She had looked the same way, all excited by the male attention, her eyes promising them heaven.

For a moment, Kane’s intention of making D’lise his own wavered. Would she do to him what Uncle Buck’s wife had done to him? Would she cheat on him, rip him apart inside?

No, by God, she wouldn’t. His hands clenched into fists. He would be strong where his uncle had been weak. He’d beat the living hell out of any man who even looked at D’lise with desire in his eyes.

His gaze was drawn to the preacher standing in front of the room, holding up a box with a red ribbon on it. The men were bidding on it, and from all the shouting going on around D’lise, he knew it was her box supper that was causing so much excitement.

“I’ll put a stop to that right now,” he muttered, and strode through the open door just as Reverend House was calling excitedly, “Seven dollars, do I hear eight?”

Not slowing his pace as he made for the group of men around D’lise, he called sharply and clearly, “I bid ten dollars.” All eyes swung to him. The cold fire gleaming in his eyes dared any man to over-bid him.

The room grew so quiet the plaintive call of a whippoorwill was heard clearly in the night air. Ignoring the simmering tension, Kane reached into his shirt pocket and handed over the money to cover his bid. Then, to D’lise’s incredulous surprise, he caught her by the arm and steered her through the staring people and on out the door.

“Kane Devlin,” she cried, “what do you think you’re doing?” She struggled to free herself from his steel grip, but his fingers didn’t loosen their hold until Kane had transferred both hands under her arms and lifted her onto Snowy’s back. Before she could catch her breath, he was up behind her, an arm clamped across her waist. With a whack of his heel on the stallion, they were galloping away.

D’lise burned with anger and embarrassment, but knew it would be useless to try to express herself over the noise of thundering hooves and the whistling wind they created.

“But just wait until we get home,” she silently told herself.

To add to her anger and irritation, the first thing D’lise saw as they approached the cabin was Raven sitting on her damned rock. The woman reminded her of a scavenger, sitting around waiting to pick her bones.

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