He relaxed his grip, and then released her. Standing tall and straight, he said, “No, you shouldn’t. In fact, I’m the last man you should trust.”
Chapter Six
Elise blinked, the blood receding from her face as she stepped away from him in growing horror. “What are you not telling me, Mr. Cade?”
She watched as a battle warred on his features, his face twisted into a semblance of honor and self-preservation.
When he clenched his jaw and remained silent, her voice rising as she demanded, “It was all a lie, wasn’t it?” She put a hand to her head and turned away from him, wondering how she could have been foolish enough to be duped by this stranger. She’d taken everything he said at face value; never thinking to question whether that tintype he had with him was evenhisfamily. She covered her mouth with a gasp.
What if he was just another deserter who had stolen that pack?
“I never lied to you.”
His deep voice didn’t even penetrate her growing panic. Images of the day she’d been accosted came tumbling back. And this time, there was no one who might come to her aid. Suddenly, shespied the rifle propped up by the door. It wasn’t loaded, for he’d shot that warning shot earlier. Either way, she’d found that staring down the barrel of an empty gun could be rather daunting.
She rushed over and grabbed it, bringing it to her shoulder and aiming it directly at his heart. “I think it’s time you left, Mr. Cade.”
He held up his hands, even though he had to know it wasn’t primed. His face was calm and composed when he said, “Everything I said was true,” he reiterated. “The only thing I concealed was that the men I shot weren’t just simple trappers. Some of them had prominent connectionstotheEnglishCrown.” He swallowed. “One of them was the Earl of Arandine.”
The hold Elise had on the gun wavered, her eyes narrowing as she considered this new information, and whether or not she should believe it.
“I found out, not long after I left,that the Canadian authorities had put a bounty on my head.It was why I never stayed in one place for any length of time, and why I chose to trek throughthe mountains with no other choice but my own safety. I fully intend to make my way to California, and maybe as far as Mexico.” Hisebony eyes shone with purpose. “I’ll be looking over my shoulder for the rest of my days, but if you ask me if I would do it again, the answer is yes. Those men took everything from me, my only reason for living. Withoutmy wife andson,I am nothing.”
They stared off at one another for a few more moments, and then Elise lowered the gun with a sigh.She closed her eyes, not even sure what her next move should be. Her father had always told her to listen with her heart, but from the moment Chauncey Cade had walked through her door, that particular organ had been decidedly fickle, even more so when his cool, even words tore through her soul.
Elise opened her eyes and looked at him once more. “We are more alike than you might think, Mr. Cade. We’re both alone with nowhere else to go.” She swallowed. “Please, stay. I…don’t want you to leave.”
He regarded her for a moment, and then gave a nod of his head. “Then I’ll continue to be obliged to you, ma’am.” He paused and then added. “But if I’m going to be here for a while, then you have to give me something to do, rather than stare at the wall. I’m not used to much inactivity.”
Elise walked over and put the rifle back in the cabinet where it belonged. She turned back to Mr. Cade and put her hands on her hips. “I think that can be arranged.”
***
Chauncey still wasn’t sure if staying there was the right idea, for either of them, but he honestly didn’t want to leave Elise. And now that she knew the whole, sordid truth of his past, as well as gaining her reluctant acceptance, the need to stay with her was even more pronounced. Nothing would ever take the place of his Martha or their son, but with Elise, he could actually imagine a life at her side. Of course,sucha dream was impossible since he was a wanted man, and he refused to take another woman down with him. But it was something he could entertain at night when helaydown to sleep.
After they sat down for lunch, she gathered up the dishes. “I would appreciate it if you could heat some water. It’s time I did the wash.” She gestured to the rug in the living area. “And if you can beat that rug, I would be grateful. I dislike that nearly as much as sewing.”
He inclined his head and stood. “I’d be glad to.”
The rest of the afternoon passed in a bevy of chores. He quickly found that Elise didn’t stay immobile for long, but as a woman who lived on her own, she found plenty to do.
After the wash was done,she strung up a line of twine in her bedchamber. He found her pinning up a set of white cotton undergarments when he returned from taking care of the rug. She glanced over her shoulder and colored slightly. “I normally hang these in the living area, but I didn’t think you’d appreciate waking up to a woman’s petticoats.”
He grinned. “I daresay it wouldn’t be the first time.”
She reddened even more, if possible, but said nothing more.
As Elise cooked the evening meal, Chauncey packed more wood in from outside and also hauled another bucket of water. On his second trip inside, she saw that there was fresh snow on his bearskin coat. “It’s started snowing again?”
“It appears so,” he returned dryly. “I don’t recall Texas being quite so…white.”
He winked at her and she busied herself with gathering the dishes for the table. “You’ve beenout westbefore?” she asked.
“I have, although not this far. My father had business in Fort Worth when I was little. He hadconsidered the longhorn cattle trade for a time, but decided that he preferred the wilderness of Canada to the desert army outpost in the plains.” He studied her. “What about you? How did you end up in Texas?”
“My parentsarrived here on the wagon train from Kentucky,” she returned, asshe began to divide up themeat and cooked vegetables that began to tantalize his nostrils. “Many were headed out west to the California gold rush, but when they passed through Charming, my mother said she fell in love with the town and wanted to stay. My father agreed and here I am.”
“It sounds as though it certainly didn’t take much to convince him,” he noted.
