Read Online Cowboys 08 - Luke by Leigh Greenwood - Free Book Online

contemplating how to enter the coach. He could see she wanted to refuse, but he knew she'd never get inside without assistance. She probably didn't know how, especially not in those cumbersome skirts.
    "You'll end up showing more than an ankle if you try it on your own," he said.
    "Is that what you've been waiting for?"
    "I'm in no hurry. I expect I'll see a great deal more than an ankle before this trip is over."
    "And just what do you mean by that?"
    If she hadn't looked so ridiculously overdressed, it would have been funny. Maybe ridiculous wasn't the right word. She'd made a very poor choice of what to wear, but she looked lovely. "A trip like this doesn't allow for privacy of the kind you're used to."
    "Why not?"
    "You'll soon find out. Now, do you want me to help you into the coach?"
    "Please." The word sounded more like a curse.
    "When I lift you, put both feet on that step. You'll be able to climb up on your own after that." He didn't wait for the protest he knew trembled on Valeria's lips. He stepped behind her, caught her under the arms, and lifted her into the air. He kept his hands on her back while she put a foot on the second step, then stepped up into the coach.
    "Next time I'll wait for Hans or Otto," she said.
    "Next time you'll have to," Luke said as he closed the door and turned his back. He didn't mean to get near her again unless he had to. Just looking at her disturbed him. Touching her upset his equilibrium, destroyed his feeling of detachment, and that threatened his ability to do his work. He couldn't have that. Luke didn't have anything he could point to with pride, except his work. He wouldn't allow anything to jeopardize it.
    "I want you to stay with the horses," Luke said, turning back to Zeke. "Hawk will scout around for good camping places and keep a lookout for trouble. When we camp at night, I want you two to sleep on opposite sides of the camp."
    "It sounds like you're expecting trouble." "I'm certain of it."
    "Then leave the horses behind."
    "It's not the horses."
    "The woman?"
    Luke nodded.
    "If I were looking to rob you, I'd settle for the horses or the wagons."
    "I expect somebody will try," Luke said. "She should have left it all in New Orleans, but I guess she wants as much of her past around her as possible."
    "She'll never survive."
    "She's spoiled and temperamental, but she's tough." Zeke's gaze narrowed. "You sound like you admire her."
    "People like her have survived as heads of state in Europe for hundreds of years. When it comes to making decisions, there's not an ounce of sentiment in them. Their hearts would put a cash register to shame. She's like a snow-capped mountain, filled with fire deep inside, but cold enough to freeze anyone who tries to conquer her."
    "And I was beginning to think you liked her."
    Luke stopped. He hadn't realized he knew half the things he'd just told Zeke until the words were out of his mouth. That wasn't like him. To Luke, women were objects of desire, for companions for an evening to soothe his spirit and satisfy his body. He never bothered looking beneath the surface. Occasionally he might remember a name, but most of the time women were interchangeable.
    But not Valeria. The moment she'd walked into that hotel-tired, irritable, imperious-he'd felt something inside him jump. A muscle twitch. A spasm. A sensitive nerve. He didn't know. He just knew he had a definite reaction to her, and that wasn't good. He needed to be immune to all women, unaffected by anything and anyone around him.
    "Time to get moving," Luke said, "or we'll still be within sight of Bonner when we camp tonight."
    "Move 'em out!" Zeke shouted, then headed toward his horse.
    The call reminded Luke of the days when he lived with Jake and Isabelle, working the ranch with all the orphans, going on trail drives with the Randolph family. They had been good days, but all the boys had been filled with hate, anger, jealousy, distrust, a thirst for revenge, a desire to hurt someone because