“Sure thing.” Cameron hopped off the porch and headed toward a distant scattering of hay.
Austin returned his gaze to her, his fingers tightening their hold.
“Is everything all right?” she asked.
She watched his Adam’s apple slowly slide up and down. His blue eyes smoldered like flames on the verge of coming back to life. “Everything is just fine. As a matter of fact, I think it’s been fine for a while and I just didn’t notice.” He cradled her cheek. “I love you, Loree.”
Her heart slammed against her ribs. “You don’t have to say that just because I did—”
“That’s not why I’m saying it.” He dipped his head slightly. “I’m saying it because it’s true.”
He closed the distance between their mouths, their hearts, with a kiss that made her body feel like a melted pool of wax, warm and molten, easily shaped to fit his desires. And more to fit her desires, desires that spiraled through her. She slipped her hands beneath the shoulders of his sheepskin jacket and felt the comforting heat of his body. He brought his coat around her. Her toes crept over his boots. And the baby rolled between them.
Austin drew away and glanced down at the small mound. Then he lifted his gaze. “Figure we’ll spend the day here, pack up our stuff, go to that Christmas ball that Dee is giving in town … then head home.”
She gave him a quick nod.
“Don’t remind me of any promises I’ve made in the past when we get home.”
Her voice caught in her throat, forcing her to push out the words. “I won’t.”
A slow lazy smile spread across his face and in it, she read a new promise, a promise she dearly wanted him to keep.
With long strides, Austin carried the box of presents to the wagon. He and Loree had been blessed last night with an assortment of gifts that ranged from useable items for the baby to a picture from Faith that he suspected was a horse only because it had been scribbled in brown.
After setting the box in the back of the wagon, he dug through the contents until he found one of the music sheets Loree had given him. He opened it and again studied the black ovals with the strange sticks and flags. He supposed it wouldn’t hurt to let Loree explain them to him. If they made sense to her, maybe they could make sense to him.
“Austin?”
Becky’s serene voice came from behind him. He stuffed the sheet into the box, spun around, and realized that he’d lied to Loree.
He’d told her once that a man couldn’t tell if a woman had been made love to, but standing here, staring at the warm glow on Becky’s cheeks, he had no doubt that she had just been well and thoroughly loved.
“I just wanted to thank you,” she said softly.
“For what?”
“For whatever it was that you said to Cameron that made him stop doubting my love.”
“I just told him the truth.” He turned and shoved the box farther back into the wagon.
Becky came up alongside him. “I did love you, you know,” she said quietly.
He met her gaze. “I know.”
“What we had was so incredibly sweet … and young.” She furrowed her brow. “I don’t know if that makes sense.”
“It does.”
“If we had gotten married five years ago—even without you going to prison—I don’t know if our love would have survived the passing years. I think we would have been content, but never truly happy.”
Words backed up in his throat and he could do little more than give her an understanding nod.
“I know it’s been hard on you since you got back. Cameron and I just finished talking about some things that we hadn’t really discussed before. I’m willing to make a public announcement saying I was with you the night Boyd was killed.”
Austin felt as though the air had been pulled from his lungs. Emotions clogged his throat. He knew that announcement would cost Becky more than her reputation. It would cost Cameron his pride.
“I appreciate that, Becky. More than you’ll ever know, but I think it would cause more harm than good. That’s the reason I told you not to say anything five years ago. Most people would think you were lying to protect me, but your words would still plant the seeds of doubt about your reputation in everyone’s mind. It’s not worth taking the chance of hurting not only you and Cameron, but Drew as well.”
