Night Hawk'S Bride (Tyler) (Harlequin Historical Series, No 558) (19 page)

T
he miles passed, and Marie felt the baby within her strengthen and grow. Traveling was uncomfortable, but she would suffer anything for the chance to see Night Hawk again.

He'd said they wouldn't suit. He'd said goodbye. But he'd never given her a real reason why they couldn't be together. Maybe he was afraid. He'd lost most of his family. Maybe he'd been alone so long he didn't think he deserved to be loved.

And if she fought for their love and he still didn't want her, then so be it. She would return to her aunt's home certain she'd done the right thing.

But if Night Hawk saw she was pregnant and he wanted to try to make a marriage work, then she would stay. Love had blossomed between them once. Couldn't it bloom again?

“Do you need another pillow, Marie?” her cousin, John, asked as the stage bounced hard over ruts in the road.

Her stomach still felt sick and she shook her head.

“The wind's warm. Here, trade places with me. The
fresh air will do you good.” John took her hand and helped her scoot against the window. “How are you feeling?”

“I'll live. And don't look at me like that,” she warned him. “I'm not going to have the baby yet.”

“Good, that's the attitude.” He was teasing her, trying to get her mind off her queasiness. “I don't mind a trip through the wilderness, but I'm not about to deliver a baby.”

“Don't worry. You won't have to.” She had another month. It seemed so far away. The baby kicked her hard and she winced. He had strong legs, that was for sure.

When she saw the sparkling waters of Lake Michigan, untouched and half-wild, she knew it wasn't far now.

 

“Boss, Haskins brought his filly by.” Winter Thunder trotted through the sun-crisped meadow and hopped over the split-rail fence. “I put her in the corral by the training stable.”

“Well-done.” Night Hawk smiled at the boy, who was almost a young man.

Although Henry still refused to speak with Night Hawk, the fort's horse shortage had reached a crisis. Colonel McGee had made an offer to pay Night Hawk for training some of the fort's mounts and to buy Arabians as they needed. Soon, other settlers began doing business with him. He'd been so busy, he'd taken Winter Thunder on as an apprentice.

It had been a good decision. Night Hawk was well pleased with the lad's progress. He had a good hand
with the horses, and it felt rewarding to teach someone younger the skills his father had taught him.

“I'll be back before noon.” Night Hawk wheeled Shadow toward the road. “Fill the water troughs while I'm gone. And stay off Devil. He's got to learn some manners before you try riding him.”

“All right.” Winter Thunder rolled his eyes in the way of all boys his age.

Night Hawk chuckled. He couldn't help it. He had so much to be thankful for. His dream of a successful horse ranch was coming true. It wasn't a life with Marie, but it was something to be glad for. “I'll bring you back some peppermint.”

“For me or the horses?”

“I'll bring enough for you, too.” He pressed Shadow into a smooth lope and welcomed the warm wind against this face.

“Look!” Winter Thunder called out, pointing high in the sky where a lone bird soared across the face of the hot sun.

It couldn't be.
Night Hawk drew Shadow to a stop and waited. Wonder filled him as the hawk circled once and then again. His call seemed like a greeting.

It was the hawk Marie had found injured. The bird Night Hawk hadn't seen since the day Marie left.

The hawk sailed on a gentle breeze and lighted on a nearby fence post. The regal creature cocked his head from side to side, and then called again.

“I don't have any food with me,” he told the bird, who continued to beg. “Winter Thunder, ride up to the house and bring back some smoked trout.”

The hawk preened, and a second bird glided out of the sky to perch on the rail at his side. A female.

“So, you found a mate, did you?” Night Hawk told himself it meant nothing. Nothing at all. He'd practically made a pet out of the hawk. It was no surprise the creature had returned here to nest.

But his people would say the hawk's arrival with a mate signaled something of great value was to return to him.

Coincidence, he told himself. It had to be.

 

Marie didn't mind the dust in the air that nearly choked her as John helped her from the stage. She didn't care that her back ached something fierce and her lower right leg smarted from a recent cramp. She was home!

Lush green trees crowded out the horizon and most of the sky. Finches and warblers darted overhead on the wind singing their cheerful songs. The settlement had grown some, and the schoolhouse had been repaired. The road was busier. People she didn't recognize drove by in wagons, calling pleasant hellos to one another.

“Where are we going to be staying, Marie?” John asked her, taking her arm to protect her from the crowd. “You shouldn't be in the heat like this. Let me take you over to the shade, and I'll take care of our baggage.”

Marie's back muscles cramped again, and she didn't feel completely well. She probably needed to sit still and rest a bit. That was the sensible thing to do, but it was hard not to argue when she was so close. Only
the length of the road heading north was between her and Night Hawk.

She'd come so far, surely she could wait another hour, she told herself as her cousin led her toward a new bench in the shade of the mercantile. Her awkward stomach felt enormous as she noticed several strangers looking at her.

“Marie?”

Night Hawk?
Suddenly he was towering over her on the path, surprise marking the handsome face so familiar to her. She had to fight hard to keep from reaching out for him.

Her gaze lovingly worshiped him, from his black hair tied crisply at his nape to the blue cotton shirt he wore, and down to his polished boots. He looked the same—tall and muscular and trim. She knew how hard his chest would feel against her fingertips. She longed to touch him. To step into the circle of his arms and never let go.

Then it occurred to her why he was staring at her with his jaw slightly slack. Her very pregnant stomach was hard to miss. She laid her hand on the round of it and felt the life inside. Speech failed her. How could she find the words to tell him that this was his son? Their son. Not here in the path where anyone could see.

Surely he had to know. The surprise remained on his face, and finally he snapped to attention and offered John his hand.

“I am Night Hawk, an acquaintance of Marie's. She taught my niece for a time.” How formal he sounded, as if he were making polite dinner conversation.

“Night Hawk?” John tossed a questioning look at Marie, then warmly accepted the man's hand. “Pleased to meet you. Marie has told me all about you. I hope, while I'm here, you could show me your ranch. I'm a horse trainer, too, and I'm always looking for business.”

“Fine.” Night Hawk nodded in agreement, then turned toward her.

She'd dreamed of this moment all the way from Ohio. Across every mile as her body grew rounder and the baby within grew into its own strong life force. A sharp kick to what felt like her kidney made her remember that this was no dream. The man she loved more than her own life was standing right here in front of her.

Just say the words, invite him over to the shade where it's quiet and tell him.
But the look of heartbreak in his eyes made her forget every carefully rehearsed speech.

Sorrow darkened his eyes. A great grief shone there, deep and hopeless. He glanced at her stomach again, and she knew. He regretted what he'd said. He never would have sent her away if he knew. Because he loved her.

Now she knew what love was, and what it looked like. It was this man.

“I wish you well, Marie.” Night Hawk's face twisted, his composure appearing to be shattered, and he simply walked away.

“He loves you,” John whispered in her ear.

“I know.” She was grateful for her cousin's steady hand on her elbow. She didn't feel so strong, suddenly.
But that didn't mean she would stop fighting for what she believed in.

 

She's married. She's happy. It's what I wanted.
But that didn't wash away the agony in his heart. He'd thought saying goodbye to Marie had been the worst loss of his life, but this was worse. Seeing her pregnant and happy, with a decent-looking man—one with money—made it real. She was with someone else and would never again be his.

Except that judging by the girth of her stomach, the baby she carried wasn't one made
after
she'd left the settlement. He thought of the sun-swept meadow by the lake when the turning leaves had painted the forests amber, gold and orange. When he and Marie made love for the first time. It didn't take a genius to count the months to know that the child she carried was his and no other's.

“Boss! What's wrong?” Winter Thunder looked up from the well.

Only then did Night Hawk realize he'd been running Shadow hard. Foam flecked the stallion's black coat and the animal was breathing hard.

“Nothing, just got carried away. Here.” He handed down the heavy packs. “Peppermint's inside.” It's all he could manage before he pressed Shadow into an all-out gallop and they headed for the woods.

Leaves slapped against his face and arms. A limb struck his ankle when Shadow leaped over a fallen tree. The run was a hard one—the stallion racing half-wild through the forest. Wildlife scattered from their path. Night Hawk lost himself in the challenge of the
ride. He wouldn't think about Marie. Or the baby she carried.

If he had to ride forever, so be it.

Then the forest opened into a small fragrant meadow. A pair of warblers took flight into the trees as Shadow skidded to a halt. This had been his mother's favorite meadow. Filled with wildflowers that made the air sweet. Shaded enough so that in midsummer she could sit all day with her work and gaze out on the lake where Father fished.

Remembering made him weak. It made him long for the family he'd lost. And the family he would never have. He slid off Shadow and gave the horse a pat on the flank. Understanding, the great stallion tossed his head, letting the wind catch his mane, and he was off, racing the wind on his own.

Anger, grief, regret. All three hit Night Hawk as hard as a twister chewing up everything in its path. He sank to his knees in the lush grass, breathed in the scent of early summer and gazed down at the lake below. Water glimmered cheerfully, birds glided by on joyful wings, trees rustled with the voice of gladness. He felt dark inside and lost.

All those times Marie had looked at him with loving eyes and a jubilant smile she must have known about the baby. Maybe she'd been trying to find a way to tell him. And what had he told her?
Goodbye.
When she'd been carrying his babe.

It was for the best. He clung to it, even though he felt dead inside. The last thing he would ever feel was this all-consuming grief that would never end.

For the loss of the woman and child he loved with all his soul.

He sat for a long while as the sun moved past its zenith. Shadow returned, walking peacefully, and rubbed his nose hard along Night Hawk's back.

“I don't have any peppermint,” he said dully. “Go back to the ranch.”

Shadow knocked him over.

“Hey!” He rubbed his hand down the stallion's neck. “What is your problem?”

Then Meka's bark echoed faintly in the valley below. A bark of joy and welcome, the one the dog always reserved for Marie. The dog bounded through the meadow and disappeared.

Night Hawk stumbled to his feet. His pulse pounded though his veins as he ran to the meadow's edge, where the hillside fell away and he could see most of the lakeshore. There, in the meadow that met the water, he saw a spot of gray. A woman.
Marie.

 

With Meka at her side, she watched the placid lake lap the shore and felt a deep peace. Marie laid her hand on her stomach, wincing as her back tightened again. She was far too pregnant to have been sitting in a bouncing stage. This walk had helped stretch her tired muscles. After all, carrying a baby was a major undertaking.

Beneath her hand, she could feel the flutters of life as her child moved. Earlier, he'd been hiccuping when she and John had joined the Websters for dinner in their home.

Mrs. Webster had taken one look at them on her
doorstep, stared at Marie's obvious pregnancy and then rushed her right inside. Not another word was said about her supposedly shameful state, although Marie had the feeling Mrs. Webster understood. And could correctly guess who the father was.

She was supposed to be resting, but her muscles had ached and she'd wanted a walk. John had gone to speak with Henry. Marie didn't hold any hope the coldhearted man could change his ways. His love no longer mattered to her. She had Aunt Gertrude. She still had a chance with Night Hawk.

The image of heartbreak on his face told her everything. He wanted her. He loved her. Still.

Meka barked in welcome again, bounding away from Marie's side. There on the incline above her emerged a man as dark as the shadows. His stance spoke power. His black hair rippled in the wind.

When he stepped into the sunlight, joy splashed across her heart like the brightest dawn. Looking at him made her feel as if her life was just beginning. The sun shone only for them as he strode down the path. His gaze locked on hers and she felt a steel band wrap around her stomach and clamp tight. Everything within her cried out at his approach.

“Why are you here?” Night Hawk fought to keep the intense mix of emotions from his face and his voice. He saw her blanch, and he knew he'd failed. He cleared his throat and tried again. “I didn't think you would come to this place.”

“I think of it as our place.” She smiled shyly at him and lit up his whole world. The sun in the sky,
the stars in the heavens could not be as beautiful as this one woman.