She was bending over the fire when he entered the cabin.
“And who is this pretty bit, Revis?” Wesley drawled. “I heard you had all the comforts up here but I didn’t know about this one.”
Slowly Leah turned to face him. There was no surprise on his face, but his eyes were shooting fire.
“Leah’s mine,” Revis said in a hard voice. “I don’t share her and there’s no question of who she belongs to.”
Wesley, with a slow smile, stepped nearer Leah. Only she could see his face and what she saw there made her step backward. His anger made her afraid.
“Wesl—,” she began.
He grabbed her about the waist, pulling her to him. “Watch out, pretty lady, you’re about to step into the fire. My name’s Wesley Armstrong, what’s yours?” His eyes were warning her and threatening her all at the same time.
Over his shoulder she could see Revis as his dark face turned darker. Here was something she hadn’t considered. If she showed Revis she preferred Wesley, would Revis slip a knife into her husband’s ribs?
“Unhand me, you filthy thief,” she said loudly and watched the confusion in Wesley’s eyes. “None of your kind will ever touch me.” Taking advantage of Wes’s astonishment, she pushed away from him.
Wes began to recover himself. “I think I’d like to have this little filly, Revis,” he said smugly. “Maybe we can work out a deal.”
“Leah is mine,” Revis repeated, teeth clenched.
“Maybe the lady should choose.” Wes smiled as he confidently advanced toward her. “Maybe you have trouble with women, but I don’t. Come here, wench.”
“Wench!” Leah said with a gasp. Perhaps she did love him, but this wench business was a little too much. To her right was a bowl of cornbread batter she had just mixed. With a little cat smile forming on her lips she lazily lifted the bowl, then with a quick motion tossed the contents into Wesley’s smiling face. While he stood there flinging globs of batter off his face, Leah turned to Bud and Cal. “This overdressed peacock is the same as the other one. If he gets too near me I’ll serve you raw bacon for breakfast.”
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Revis give a satisfied grunt, turn on his heel, and leave the cabin. Now all she had to deal with was Wesley’s rage. “Wench indeed,” she snapped before moving out of Wesley’s reach.
Before he left the cabin to wash, he didn’t say anything to Leah, but the look on his face made her swallow hard.
“Do you think he will beat you?” Bud whispered.
“Would you let him?” she asked, aghast.
“You were mean to him,” Cal answered.
“Be quiet and eat,” she said, and only then realized they were laughing at her. “I hope you realize it was your cornbread I dumped on him. Maybe next time it’ll be the apple tart I’m baking for supper.”
“We will not let him beat you!” Bud and Cal said, eyes wide, then they grinned at her. “You sure are an exciting woman, Leah.”
“I hope Wesley agrees with you,” she said heavily before turning back to the fire.
As the sun began to set and Leah was once again loading the table down with food, Wesley entered the cabin. If he looked at her, Leah didn’t see because she was afraid to turn in his direction. She knew he didn’t understand why she’d turned him down. No doubt he thought he could protect her better if she were his wench.
Still playing her role, she stepped completely out of his reach when she put food on the table. She could feel the eyes of both Revis and Wesley on her.
“So you know of this rich wagon?” Revis was saying to Wes. “The Dancer sent you to lead for this one job?”
Wes looked around the room at Bud, Cal, Abe, Verity, and Leah. “Perhaps we should talk later.”
Revis gave a slow grin. “Bud and Cal are my brothers. Abe wouldn’t talk, would you, Abe?”
“No sir, Mr. Revis,” Abe said with his mouth full. “Secrets are safe with me.”
“And Verity is too frightened to tell anything,” Revis continued.
“And the pretty one?” Wesley asked.
“She’s mine and she can’t leave,” Revis said in a hard voice. “Now tell me what you were sent here to tell me.”