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Stroking her cheek, I said, “All right. But Jonah’s waiting.”
She turned her head toward Jonah, who waited patiently as he held the horses’ leads.
She bit her lip, then nodded. “All right.”
I kissed her again, for I couldn’t help it.
“Hurry back, wife.” Even though she had my cum sliding down her thighs, I didn’t want her to forget she belonged to me as well. It would be a long day in the saddle. “I have plans for you.”
9
TENNESSEE
Jonah introduced me to his son, who had come out onto the porch at the sound of our arrival. With raven black hair and dark brown eyes, he looked nothing like his father. His skin was olive toned where Jonah was fair. They were both of similar height, but Abel was lean. The look on his face when Jonah had said I was his wife had been that of utter shock. He’d only offered me a quick nod, then demanded he speak with Jonah in private. He hadn’t waited for Jonah to agree, only turned and headed off toward the stable a short distance away.
I’d felt shunned, but Jonah’s kiss to the top of my head had been reassuring. Instead of directly following Abel, he’d led me inside and to the kitchen where I met Mrs. Tunbridge, the longtime housekeeper. While she’d also been surprised by our nuptials, she was thrilled.
After Jonah left me with her as he went to speak with Abel, she’d sat with me at the kitchen table and shared how she’d hoped for years Jonah would find a woman to marry. A rotund woman with a calm disposition, she’d set me at ease. Over glasses of lemonade, she’d coaxed from me the story of our marriage, although I hastily modified it to our meeting in Butte and marrying the next day. I hadn’t been sure of Jonah’s intention of telling the woman I was married to him as well as James, but since she was under his employ, I’d thought it his to share.
Mrs. Tunbridge had pointed me toward the stable to join the men, and I’d worked my way there, taking in the ranch. The house was made of a mixture of river rock and log with a steep pitched roof to allow snow to slide off. Roofs in North Dakota were of similar design, although not many were made of log. While the home wasn’t anything like the mansions in Butte, it sat large and sturdy in a picturesque setting, perhaps taking on the character of the men who lived within. The prairie here rolled into lush hills, so the view only went so far. I could see dark cattle dotting the landscape.
I shielded my eyes from the sun with my hand as I looked about. There was not much difference, from what I saw, between the Wells and Carr ranches, besides the houses. But, I knew nothing about cows or ranch life.
I started walking again, thinking I knew only a little bit more about Jonah and James than I did about cows. After talking with the women at Bridgewater, I decided to tell my husbands about how Ginny and Georgia were in danger. Ann had said there were no secrets in a Bridgewater marriage, and I kept a big one to myself. I’d tried to tell James, and I’d do so again later when we returned.
“I can’t believe you’re married,” Abel said. His voice carried around the side of the stable. “You didn’t know her two days ago!”
It was his angry tone that had me stopping and leaning against the wood roof of the building. I didn’t want to interrupt, and I certainly wanted to hear the men’s conversation about me unchecked. Being the gentleman, Jonah would curb his tongue, and force his son to do the same if he didn’t, in my presence.
“Do you know those at Bridgewater?” Jonah asked.
There was silence. A pause so long I wondered if they’d walked away. “Are you telling me you married her, a woman named after a state, with someone else?” Abel asked.
“With James Carr.”
Abel sputtered, then laughed. “She’s got to be my age.”
“She is,” Jonah agreed.
He’d said
my father hadn’t given me what I’d needed, but he would. I’d had to call him Sir and go over his knee for a spanking. And I’d liked it. I’d come to want it, even taunted Jonah with the sir title. But now, I felt cheap. Tawdry. Like a recalcitrant child.
“You said you’d never marry again. I’ve never seen you once take any kind of interest in a woman.”
He hadn’t wanted to marry?
“She was in trouble.”
My heart lurched at Jonah’s words. He married me solely because I’d been a damsel in distress? That I was going to saloons to earn money? The first time I’d met him was in the alley behind that shady establishment.
“You don’t have to marry a woman if she’s in trouble. You help her across the street, get her a refreshment. Carry her packages.”
Jonah didn’t reply. I was recognizing he used his calm demeanor with more than just me. Obviously, Abel was angry, and Jonah was allowing him to openly share his discontent.
“She’s beautiful, but you could have found easier pussy. A widow, perhaps, who didn’t require vows to get beneath you.”
My fingers flew to my lips to stifle my gasp.
