CHAPTER10
“What did you think of Blanche?” Martin asked Jakob as they rode along the road, the stars and moon lighting their way. Normally, they were not out this late, but tonight was an exception.
After a long day of being in town, Martin was ready to go home. And yet it had been more fun than he expected. He hadn’t gone there today with the expectation of finding a wife. That just seemed impossible. Yet Martin knew he wanted to marry Blanche. And soon.
Talking to her tonight, he’d quickly realized she was everything he wanted in a woman. And he couldn’t wait to slip his hand beneath her skirts. The simple kiss they’d shared had only made him eager for more. And he loved the way she’d been the one to initiate the simple tasting.
Blanche was a woman who went after what she wanted and it seemed like she wanted them.
It was obvious she’d never kissed a man before, but he liked her forwardness. He liked the way she went after what she wanted. He wondered how Jakob would feel if he knew they shared a kiss.
Maybe it was better if he didn’t tell him. Because that’s not how a proper young woman, a lady, as Jakob liked to say, acted. Martin couldn’t care less if she was a lady. Of course, he wanted a good woman, but he wanted one who went after what she wanted.
Blanche seemed like that kind of girl.
“So far, I like what I see,” Jakob said. “As long as she continues to act like a good woman, then I think we’ve found our wife.”
The stars glistened in the night sky and a cool breeze blew.
Jakob was so possessed with finding a good woman. He had flaws. Martin had flaws, and any woman, regardless of who she was, would have flaws. No one could be good all the time.
Not even Jakob.
“I think your expectations are too much,” Martin said. “Tell me what you expect of our wife.”
There was silence as the horses moseyed along the trail that led to their ranch. The ride was peaceful as long as they didn’t encounter a wolf or a bear.
“My mother dressed appropriately. She always looked nice like she was going to church. She did not curse or use swear words. I’ve never seen alcohol touch her lips, and she expected the men in her life to treat her like a respected woman. I never saw her run. She glided across the room much the way Blanche did tonight.”
Unfortunately, everything he said was something good about a woman. Maybe he should ask about what would cause him to break up with her.
“What would it take for you to decide that she’s not the one?”
“That’s easy. Smoking, cursing, drinking, fighting, going to a saloon. Anything that a true lady would never do.”
Why he was so hung up on her being a lady, Martin didn’t know. He liked her spirit.
“So if she wanted to work around the ranch, what would you think?”
“Never. She’s our wife. Not a ranch hand.”
Why did he get the feeling that Blanche had worked her ranch land? Why did he get the feeling she probably had no choice? And yet she appeared like a modest lady. She acted like what Jakob wanted, but somehow Martin felt there was more to her, and he was glad.
All that beautiful auburn hair had to mean something about her personality.
What Jakob wanted sounded boring. Really boring.
“I don’t think she’d be too happy if we asked her to work the cattle,” Jakob said.
“No, but she might like to go horseback riding,” Martin replied.
“We should buy her a sidesaddle.”
Why did Martin get the feeling she wouldn’t want a sidesaddle? There was a stubborn streak that resided inside Blanche that he truly believed she was trying to hide, but eventually there would be no hiding her determination.
And a sidesaddle just didn’t seem to fit her, and he was happy with that.
Eventually her true feelings and emotions would show, and he couldn’t wait because he didn’t want the woman that Jakob described. He wanted a real fire-and-ice kind of woman, who could be a lady to the world and a whore in the bedroom.
“What did you think of Blanche,” Jakob said.
He thought long and hard about what he felt for the woman. She was beautiful and feisty and he could see her stubborn nature eager to escape. And yet he’d been smitten the moment he laid eyes on her.
“I’d marry her tomorrow,” he said. “And I was the one who didn’t want to marry a woman. There is something so intriguing about this girl that I can’t wait to explore every inch of her.”
He turned in the saddle and glanced at Jakob. The man stared at him in shock. Even in the darkness, he could see he was stunned.
“Amazing,” he said finally. “I truly expected to return home tonight with no one in mind. And yet you’re ready to say I do.”
Martin didn’t respond but continued riding toward the house at the end of the lane. Even if Jakob decided to return to South Carolina, at least he would have someone to keep him warm at night. In a short afternoon, he’d found the woman he wanted.
In a short afternoon, he’d changed his mind and decided he wanted love. He wanted Blanche.
But he worried about his nightmares. About the guilt that ravaged him, and if Blanche would understand his pain. Would she accept that there were days he could barely get out of bed, let alone speak?
“There will be some trying times ahead, I’m certain of it,” he said, thinking that most would be because of Jakob’s expectations, and his own damn guilt that ate at him like a deadly disease. “But I truly believe she is our woman. Our wife. And I can’t wait to spread her legs and drive my cock home deep.”
Jakob laughed. “You’re just eager to have a woman. It’s been a while.”
“I’m eager to spread a woman between us and for both of us to claim her together. And if you decide to leave, I’ll miss you, but I’m all right with that now. I just hope that Blanche can understand why I feel bad some days.”
They pulled up to the barn.
“Frankly, I hope she can help you realize that it wasn’t your fault. You’re not a murderer. Maybe she can help you see how many people you saved.”
God, he wished he could see the disaster that way, but he didn’t. All he could see were the dead bodies they carried out of the mine for days.
With a sigh, he threw his leg over the side of his horse. “No, I’m not a murderer, but a lot of people died because of me. And that’s hard to live with.”