Page 10 of The Drifter's Bride
Addison shivered from the deluge of icy rain. “Where are we going” she yelled over the roar of the wind.
“My cabin is right beyond those trees. We can wait out the storm.” He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. “I just need you to trust me.”
With a lurch, the horses were off, and Addison found herself clasped in the arms of the man who had saved her. She turned her face into his hard chest to avoid the stinging downpour.
Oh, she was going to be in so much trouble when she arrived back home. She wasn’t afraid of Aunt Ingrid, but she’d seen Uncle Weston’s temper when one of her cousins didn’t listen. And they were over thirty years old!
She prayed Uncle Weston wouldn’t be upset with Lukas.
She should have stayed closer to the house; she wanted to see everything and was tiring of waiting for someone to show her around. On the trip from Massachusetts to Nebraska, she had seen things she had never seen before. She saw green farmlands, big cities, and even mountains. Now she saw those cattle that were dotting the countryside up close. When Aunt Ingrid mentioned she had other tasks to do, Addison had jumped at the chance to take a horse out and explore the ranch.
It was her own fault she got stuck. When her horse became lame, Addison knew she couldn’t ride the animal back home. So, she tried to remember which way she came. All she knew was that she needed to find the fence line and she could follow it back to either Cousin Owen’s horse stable, or to the south pasture, and a cowboy could lead her home.
When she heard the creek, she knew she was close. Cutting through the bushes to see if she could see the fence-line, she wasn’t paying attention and her foot went right into that rabbit hole. Her legs became so twisted in her skirt that she couldn’t figure out how to get her foot out of the burrow.
So, she prayed. Then cried. Lamented. Then prayed some more.
It was as if God was answering her prayers when the cowboy with the dirty blond hair and light brown eyes arrived to rescue her. She was so thankful he had come along when he did. She took a deep breath against the cotton of his shirt, and she inhaled.
Oh! He smelled wonderful. Like laundry hung on the line to dry right before the storm came. It differed from what she was expecting. Most of the cowboys Uncle Weston employed smelled like dirt, sweat, and cow pies. She preferred the way Lukas smelled over that.
So many questions swirled through her head.
“We’re there,” he murmured, his lips brushing against her ear. He was probably shouting against the wind, but it felt like a whisper. She nodded into his wet shirt, embarrassment coloring her movement. He stopped the horse, and she lifted her head, her eyes gazing at a small cabin with a window and calico curtains. There was a small porch covered by a slanting tin roof. The rain rushed down the tin and formed large puddles in the dirt in front of the house.
Lukas slid from the horse, and she barely had time to realize what he was doing before he grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him, depositing her on the wooden porch. Tying his horse to the hitching post, he scooped her back up.
“I can walk,” she squealed. It embarrassed her that he had to carry her inside, but he acted as if she weighed nothing.
“Probably, but I’d like to look at your ankle before you put weight on it.” He had taken two enormous steps, and they were standing on the small porch. “Can you work the latch on the door? I need to get the horses taken care of.”
Addison reached over to the wooden door that hung on hand-carved wooden hinges. The wooden latch comprised a lever-type mechanism that allowed the occupants to secure the door from the outside. She reached over and grasped the lever, pushing it to the side, and the door swung open on wooden pegs.
Lukas carried her over the threshold and dropped her on a small wooden table. Wrapping her arms around herself to keep warm, she watched as he struck a match and light flickered in the room. Taking the candle, he placed it on the table next to her.
“Be right back,” he said, disappearing back outside into the dark. He left the door open, and rain came in, wetting the floor.
Addison sighed and lifted the candle, looking around the small cabin. The inside was dark, the small flame not providing much light. The smell of charred wood and stale coffee permeated the darkness. Letting her eyes adjust to the darkness, she spied a small step-top cast-iron stove in the corner. Several baskets of vegetables lined a wall and a small cupboard sat in the corner. There was a doorway covered with a quilt, which Addison thought must lead to a bedroom.
It appeared to be small, cozy, and clean, although sparsely furnished. Apart from the stove and cupboard, the only furniture was the table she was getting wet, and two chairs.
It appeared to be a very practical house, but not very livable. It wasn’t Addison’s place to provide a commentary on Lukas Arkin’s home. Sighing, she put her fears aside. She was tired, wet, cold, and hungry. She wondered if he had anything she could nibble on, as she hadn’t eaten anything since earlier that morning.
Lifting the candle once more, she spied a small box on the corner of the table. Pulling it over to her, she noticed a name etched on the top of the box.Hannah Woods.
Why would there be a metal box with a woman’s name etched on top? Addison bit her lower lip and then a thought raced through her brain.
Oh goodness, she thought.I wonder if he is really who he says he is?
She had heard tales of women being abducted out west, never to be seen again.
He’d said the right things, but that could be a ruse. After all, she didn’t know him, and he appeared not to recognize Uncle Weston’s name when she mentioned him. Everyone knew Uncle Weston.
Panicking, she knew she needed to get out of the cabin. Stepping gingerly from the table, she let her toes navigate the floor, looking for any objects that might trip her. Not finding any, she set both feet down and nearly passed out from the pain that raced up her leg.
She grabbed ahold of the chair and waited for the stars to pass before trying to inch her way to the door. She had just made it to the door when Lukas jumped on the porch.
“What are you doing?” he asked, pushing her back inside the cabin, pulling the door behind him and latching it.
