Page 139 of Texas Glory
Dallas shuddered above her before collapsing on top of her, his breathing harsh near her ear, his fingers threaded through her hair, gently scraping her scalp.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“ ’Bout time you gave me my Christmas present,” he whispered low, in a tired voice.
“Your Christmas present?”
“That’s all I wanted for Christmas. Your love.”
She closed her eyes, remembering his words in the hotel room that night so long ago. “Something that could only be given it if wasn’t asked for.”
Something she would gift him with for the remainder of her life.
EPILOGUE
May, 1884
Dallas heard his wife’s scream and bolted out of the chair.
“Sit down!”
With panic raging through him, he stumbled to a stop and glared at his brother.
“Sit down!” Houston ordered again.
Dallas balled his hands into tight fists. “A husband should be with his wife at a time like this.”
“You’d just drive her crazy. Hell, you’re driving me crazy.”
Dallas dropped back into the chair, dug his elbows into his thighs, and buried his face in his hands. “Dr. Freeman said she couldn’t have children. Christ, I’ll never touch her again.”
“You’ll touch her,” Houston said.
Dallas looked up, determination etched deeply in the lines of his face. “No, I won’t.”
“Yes, you will. One night, she’ll curl up against you, all innocent-like—” Compassion, understanding, and a wealth of sympathy filled Houston’s gaze. “You’ll touch her.”
The door to the office opened, and Rawley slipped into the room as quietly as a shadow. “I thought I heard Ma yell.”
Dallas smiled at the boy. His black hair was neatly trimmed, his face scrubbed clean. The dirt and grass stains on his newest coveralls were the only evidence in sight that he wasn’t as grown-up as he tried to pretend he was.
They had adopted him in their hearts long before the documents made it legal. Against Dallas’s preference, Rawley had kept his last name, mumbling something about not deserving the Leigh name. Dallas hoped with time and patience, the boy would someday change his mind.
Rawley had quickly fallen into the habit of calling Dee “Ma.” He had yet to call Dallas anything other than Mr. Leigh. Dallas had a feeling that the boy had a long way to go before he’d trust men.
“Why don’t you take Precious for a walk?” Dallas suggested.
Rawley eased farther into the room. “I already took her to play with her friends for a while.”
Dallas furrowed his brow. “Her friends?”
Rawley nodded. “Yep. She’s got a whole passel of friends out in the meadow. They like to play leapfrog. Only they don’t jump over her. They just sorta jump on her. Looks like they keep trying to jump over her, but they just ain’t strong enough, I reckon.”
“Good God, is she in heat?”
Rawley shrugged. “Reckon she gets hot out there. I do and I ain’t got all that fur.”
Houston’s laughter reverberated around the room. “I’d say before too long, you’re gonna be making a whole lot of leashes.”
