"Where do you suppose he sleeps?"
Elliott gestured toward the platform where Hunter had sat during supper. "Over there I think. I'll take the one opposite his. That way you'll have the whole back of the house to yourself."
Alanna chewed her lower lip nervously. "Hunter is Indian. Why should the suggestion he wed an Indian maiden insult him?"
"Haven't you better things to think about than him? My proposal, for instance?"
They were standing in the narrow passageway that ran down the center of the long house, and when Elliott reached out to catch her in a fond embrace, Alanna couldn't escape him. His touch was familiar, bearing the comfort of home, but none of the almost magical excitement she had felt in Hunter's arms. He kissed her then, a soft, sweet, gentle kiss that left her totally unmoved. Had Hunter kissed her that afternoon, she knew she would still feel it, and guilt rather than pleasure brought tears to her eyes.
"Please don't," she begged.
Instantly, Elliott dropped his arms to his sides. "I didn't realize my affection would disgust you."
"I'm not disgusted, not in the least," Alanna argued. "It's just that, well, I wish you'd give me some time to adjust to the idea you'd like to court me. I'd never even considered the possibility before today."
When stated that way, Elliott readily understood her reticence. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have spoken so sharply to you. Let's just concentrate on getting Hunter's name on a statement for the time being. We can talk about us on the trip home."
Alanna had said earlier that day that love wasn't all that important to her, but that had been before she had seen Hunter again. He was as wrong for her as he had been for Melissa, but she couldn't deny the way he made her feel. His touch made her long to reach out and caress him, and she had not forgotten the kiss he had given her last August. How could a Seneca brave be more appealing than her own cousin? How could the black-eyed devil fill her with the desire another man might never satisfy? Why would the gods torment her so cruelly?
"Alanna? Are you all right?"
"No, I don't suppose that I really am," she admitted. "It was about this time last year that we met Hunter. It's been a truly awful year, hasn't it?"
Elliott turned away to fetch her valise. "The worst. Here, you take this, I'll find a rope we can use to suspend some hides. This house is really cleverly made. Did you realize that?"
Alanna saw only how dark it was, rather than the ingenuity of it. "I wonder if it's warm enough in winter?"
Elliott bent down to inspect the hides stored beneath the platforms. "I'll bet it's as cozy as a cave," he offered as he searched among them. "Here, these deer skins look long enough to use. Now where would Hunter keep a rope?"
"I thought I saw one outside."
"You're right, so did I." Elliott stepped outside and returned with the neatly coiled rope. He hummed softly to himself, as he stretched it between two poles on opposite sides of the structure. He draped the hides he had chosen over it, and stood back to judge the quality of his handiwork.
"That's a pretty flimsy wall, but it's probably more privacy than you'd get at the trading post."
Alanna wondered if Hunter hadn't deliberately been trying to frighten them, but she did feel more secure there than she would have staying in a rowdy inn filled with drunken sailors and frontiersmen eager to pay a woman for her favors. She wondered if a man as appealing as Hunter ever had to pay for a woman's attentions, and decided that was not a question she cared to have answered.
The hides covering the rear of the long house were secured only at the top, permitting an easy exit, and after telling Elliott she was going to prepare for bed, she stepped outside. Surrounded by dense forest, she breathed deeply and attempted to clear her mind of the distractions conjured up by thoughts of Hunter. Despite Graham Tyler's attentions, she was still dreadfully inexperienced when it came to men, and told herself that was undoubtedly why dealing with a man with Hunter's confidence was so unsettling. At least she would only have to pretend an indifference she didn't feel until noon tomorrow, rather than the rest of her life, but managing such a feat for even those few hours wasn't going to be easy.
Seeing her leaning back against his house, Hunter stepped out of the shadows and approached her. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw him, but he raised his fingertip to his lips to warn her not to cry out. He waited until they were mere inches apart to speak.
"Elliott says you're his woman now. Is that true?"
"I, well, that is—"
"Can't any of you speak the truth?"
"Of course, I can!" Alanna whispered defiantly. "It's just that I'm not sure what it is in this case."
Hunter caressed her cheek with his fingertip. "How can you not know if you are his?"
Her hands at her sides, Alanna gripped the hides covering the doorway in a frantic clutch, and wished her emotions were as easy to hold in check. "If I have no right to inquire as to your marriage plans, then you certainly can't expect me to confide in you about mine."
"Why not? They might be the same."
The sun had already sunk below the trees, but the twilight was still bright enough to reveal Hunter's smile with alarming clarity. His lips were parted slightly, and when he leaned close, she thought he meant to whisper something, but instead he kissed her. She gave only the smallest cry, and that was muffled by his second kiss, or perhaps it was the third. She lost count as he traced a meandering trail of kisses across the soft swell of her cheek, and then lingered at her temple. Next he drew her earlobe into his mouth, and sucked it gently before sliding his tongue down the smooth curve of her neck.
By then, he was wrapped around her as securely as a vine, and she still wanted him to come closer. His mouth returned to hers, his taste honey-sweet, and she welcomed him eagerly. He was kissing her as passionately as he had the morning he had mistaken her for Melissa, but now neither of them was confused as to his purpose. His tongue caressed hers until she feared she might drown in desire, but all too soon he drew away.