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She turned to Zac and smiled. "Will we be stopping soon?"
He nodded and mumbled beneath his breath, "Not soon enough."
The wagon came to rest a few hours later. Zac fixed a fire so Prudence could heat some of the food Curly had sent along, and then he again tended the horses.
Hunger pangs assaulted his senses so badly that he found himself arguing with the horses, not that they answered him. His was not the kind of hunger that required food to quench it. No, he required a bit more sustenance. And with that satisfying thought, he hurried to finish his task.
Prudence couldn't prevent the yawns from attacking her. No matter how hard she tried to hold them back, they would break free and another would escape. She supposed it was being up most of last night, rising early this morning, and riding in the wagon most of the day that had done it.
Her body was beginning to protest and that's all there was to it. She raised her hand, covering her mouth as yet another yawn presented itself. She shook her head, attempting to shake away the fatigue that was fast overcoming her.
She stood and stretched her arms up, reaching out for the unreachable sky, trying to rid herself of the lassitude and aches. She took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh, cool air of dusk, only to find another yawn sneaking up on her.
"Tired?" Zac asked. Concern made him realize what Prudence had been through in the last twenty-four hours.
"Just a little." She didn't want to appear too tired for them to make love. She had thought about his touch all day, especially since they had sat so close on the wagon. His leg, so thick with muscles, had rubbed against hers most of the time. Intentionally or not, it didn't matter. The friction it had generated was enough to spark her passion.
"You look tired. We'll eat and then get some rest." He noticed the slight droop of her eyelids and the weighted sag of her shoulders. He should have taken her sleepless night into consideration and not pushed so hard today. They could have stopped an hour or so ago. It would have given her more time to relax. But he was anxious to put distance between them and the fort.
He was selfish. He wanted her all to himself.
Prudence didn't like his bossy tone. If she said she wasn't tired, then she wasn't tired. "I'm fine, really. You needn't concern yourself with me."
Zac held back his retort. Fatigue always brought out the crankiness in a person. "I'm starving."
Prudence's head shot up and she stared at him. She was just thinking how hungry she was and it wasn't for food. She had the overpowering urge to taste her husband.
She regained her senses and, with only a bit of stammering, spoke. "I —I found the beef Curly packed and heated it, plus the biscuits. And there's hot coffee."
"Sounds great to me." He rubbed his hands together in anticipation and joined her by the fire.
Their meal was sprinkled with only a smattering of conversation, but highlighted with several uncontrollable yawns from Prudence. When supper was finished he offered to help clean up. She didn't refuse.
Prudence was putting the last of the tin plates away when a lone wolf cry sounded in the distance. Her weariness had made her so glad they had stopped for the night that she had all but forgot to wonder where they would sleep. It would apparently be here, out in the open, virtually unprotected.
She looked to Zac.
He took the bedrolls from the wagon and spread them next to each other by the warmth of the fire. He patted the one next to his. The one closer to the flames and heat. "Come on over here and tell me what's wrong?"
Prudence hurried over and sat down on the bedroll, releasing an anxious sigh. "Did you hear that howl?"
"Sure did. It was a mournful one."
Prudence glanced out at the darkness that surrounded them. "Do you think the animal is close?"
Zac realized that she was nervous over their accommodations. Even though she prided herself in adapting easily, sleeping out under the night sky for the first time was an experience, especially for a proper lady from Boston. He reached out and cupped her chin. "There's nothing to worry about. The fire will keep the animals away, and this part of the territory is pretty much safe."
She smiled, accepting his explanation and hoping the animal wouldn't howl again tonight.
He released her chin. "Get some sleep. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."
She nodded and turned to stretch out, when she felt the kink of tension in her neck and shoulders. She moved her head from side to side, and then slowly rolled it around.
"Problem?" he asked, stretched out on his side next to her.
