Read Online Tempting Prudence: The Bride Train by E.E. Burke - Free Book Online

stables for the animals. He had a good cow that produced rich milk and pigs growing fat in a pen. The chickens ranged free and roosted in the tall grass right alongside the prairie hens. A henhouse would provide better protection. If she were living here, she would insist he build one. But she wouldn’t be living here, so what he did with his chickens was his own business.
    Arch moved out of sight, the house blocking her view. Just as well. She had to stop watching him and pining for him. Had he come courting, she would’ve been pleased by his interest, and if convinced of his integrity and respect, she would have considered him. But he hadn’t come to see her, even though he’d stated he needed a wife and she was one of the few marriageable women in town. He wouldn’t have selected her if he’d had a choice, either.
    Banishing the sobering thought, she mopped her damp forehead with a napkin. The air was cooler out here, but she felt hot, and dirty and desperate for a bath. She’d seen no tub, but she could put down an oilcloth and make do with a bucket of clean water.
    The farm abutted a wooded area with a spring-fed creek that wasn’t too far away.
    She closed the clapboard door hung on leather hinges and lowered a piece of wood to lock it shut. That wouldn’t keep out humans, but it would prevent animals from getting inside.
    “Rebel, here boy!” she called to the dog. Arch’s hound would alert her to snakes or other dangerous creatures.
    As Prudence strolled across the clearing, Rebel zigzagged in front her with his nose to the ground. He got along on three legs fine, and didn’t resent his infirmity or complain about his lot in life. In fact, he looked like he was always smiling.
    In a sense, the dog reminded her of Arch. Of course, Arch wasn’t missing limbs. His were all intact and nicely formed, and she spent far too much time thinking about them. He and Rebel were alike in that they both had a sunny outlook and disposition…and neither of them would let her wander off alone.
    At the edge of the woods, three dark-skinned, bare-chested men stepped out from the trees.
    Her heart lodged in her throat. Indians.
    They came to a halt at the same time she did. If they were surprised to see her, she couldn’t tell. Their faces might’ve been carved from walnut, being so devoid of movement or expression.
    Rather than war paint and feathers, the Indians wore an odd assortment of clothing: a patched frock coat without a shirt, a bow tie around a bare neck, feathers stuck into the band of a battered top hat. Two men sported breechcloths and moccasins. The third had fringed leggings paired with a red silk vest. Shiny black braids hung over their shoulders.
    Rebel bounded up from wherever he’d been and stood, fur bristling, between her and the three men. A low growl rumbled up from the hound’s chest.
    The Indian in the top hat raised an old flintlock rifle.
    “No!” She rushed to kneel beside Rebel and wrapped her arm around his loose-skinned neck, petting him to let him know she was all right. God forbid they would kill him simply for protecting her.
    The other Indians, who appeared to be younger, were armed with bows slung across their backs. They didn’t reach for their arrows. If they did, she didn’t have a gun.
    She glanced over her shoulder. Arch was nowhere in sight. If Rebel barked, he would come running. But then the Indian might shoot him. Or they might kill her and scalp her before he could cross the distance between them.
    Prudence fought the panic rising in her throat. Somehow, she had to communicate to these men, convince them she meant them no harm. “The dog won’t hurt you, if you don’t hurt me.”
    The man wearing the feathered top hat lowered his gun. “Want food.”
    Top Hat spoke English, or a smattering. If she could make herself understood, she might be able to convince them to leave. She couldn’t serve these Indians the special meal she’d prepared for Arch. They would kill