Page 90 of Conveniently Wed
His ma would not be happy.
And she would probably demand he go down to Tennessee and see what happened with the trial.
He thrust a hand through his hair.
His own decency would demand he go after her. Even if he didn’t want her in his life, he would have to finish it.
He’d promised to get her a start, hadn’t he? He was man enough to provide at least that for her.
His horse nickered and he turned. In the dark, he could barely make out the form of his animal. He’d wandered farther than he’d thought, just like his thoughts.
He had one job to do. One.
Get the cattle to Cheyenne. He could worry about his wife and all the trouble following her after that point. Whether thatmeant going to Tennessee or staying here with Emma for now, he didn’t know.
He couldn’t think about the things Fran’d accused him of—of using his pa’s ranch as a place to hide.
It rankled.
His brothers had said the same thing.
He wasn’t a coward.
Was he?
Between all the emotion of the day and knowing Underhill was somewhere close-by, Fran couldn’t sleep.
Judging by Emma’s rapid breathing, she wasn’t sleeping either.
“It feels like we’re too exposed in this wagon,” Fran whispered.
“I know.”
Fran sat up. “If we aren’t sleeping anyway, maybe we should just be out with the cowboys.”
Rustling came from Emma’s side of the wagon bed and she popped up. “Can we?”
They scrambled to find their shoes in the dark. And Fran had an idea.
“Do we still have Seb’s trousers and shirt?” she asked.
There was a long pause before Emma responded. “I think so. Why?”
“You should put them on. If the men are looking for you, it could make a difference to what they see in the dark.”
Emma didn’t argue with her, which told Fran the depth of her fear. It was a struggle getting her dress off and the trousers on in the dark confines of the wagon bed.
Fran helped her pin her hair as closely to her head as she could and then they were ready.
Fran stuck her head out of the canvas first. “Seb? Ricky?” Somehow, she knew Edgar would’ve left.
No answer.
Had they fallen asleep? Or ridden farther out?
Or worse, had they detected a threat?
Sudden fear, real and physical, lodged in her throat.
