Page 80 of Short-Straw Bride

Grateful that the house was only a quarter mile from the road, Meredith picked up her skirts and retraced her steps at a jog. A stitch in her side slowed her down about fifty yards from the house. Pressing a hand to her waist to battle the ache radiating there, she walked the remaining distance, stretching her stride as wide as possible.

If Travis was his usual, incredibly thorough self, she might be fortunate enough to return to the house before the men emerged from the barn. She doubted he would release them until they’d considered every eventuality and gone over their respective duties at least twice. However, Jim would be hard to corral for long, so she couldn’t count on more than fifteen minutes. And she was pretty sure she’d already used at least ten.

The house finally came into view—along with the men. They all stood gathered around a mounted Jim. Their hats were off and their heads were bowed. Her conscience twinged at the sight of the Archer brothers taking the time to pray over their brother’s safety and the situation at large, but she ignored it for the moment and took advantage of their inward focus and closed eyes to dash around the rear of the house unseen.

Once inside, she breathed a sigh of relief, or would have if her corset-laced lungs hadn’t already been panting from her brief trot through the woods. Meredith strode through the bathing room and immediately grabbed the half loaf of bread left from lunch and began slicing it into thick pieces. The easiest way to disguise her intentions was to have Travis find her where he expected—in the kitchen. The vegetable soup she’d originally thought to prepare for supper would have to wait for another day, but she could throw together some scrambled egg sandwiches for the men to take with them on guard duty.

She had just cracked the seventh egg into the skillet when the front door opened. Heavy footfalls echoed in the hall. Meredith whisked the eggs frantically with her fork, then moved the skillet directly over the firebox to speed the cooking, hoping that Travis would attribute the perspiration on her forehead to the stove’s heat and not comment upon it.

“Jim’s on his way, Meri.” Travis’s quiet voice carried over the sizzle of the frying pan.

Meredith kept her back to him as she stirred the eggs, afraid Travis might somehow discern her subterfuge in the lines of her face. “I’ll have these done in just a minute. You and the boys can take sandwiches with you.”

He made no comment, but she could sense him nearing.

“I’m sorry I didn’t have these ready before Jim left. He’s going to be hungry.”

Strong hands cupped her shoulders. “He’ll be fine.”

His touch felt good. Too good. Meredith stepped out of his loose hold and started heaping eggs onto the bread slices she’d set out. Head down, she built the sandwiches, trying to ignore her husband’s presence. Which, of course, was impossible. She’d never been more attuned to another human being in her life.

“Meri, stop.”

Her hands stilled as she wrapped a napkin around the third and final sandwich.

“Look at me, sweetheart.”

Slowly she turned. His light brown eyes shone with a depth of emotion that made her heart pound.

“I swear to you, Meri—the minute Jim confirms that Cassie is at the homestead, we’ll all ride out like the devil himself is on our heels. We won’t leave her to face Mitchell alone.”

He meant every word. She could see it in his face, hear it in his voice. But another voice echoed in her mind, as well—one asking what would happen to Cassie if Jim failed to return. How long would Travis wait before leading the charge?

Tears burned at the back of her eyes. She didn’t want to defy her husband. Truly she didn’t. It could destroy the trust between them, destroy the chance of love ever taking root in his heart. But she had no choice. She couldn’t sit uselessly in the house under Travis’s protection when her knowledge of the homestead could mean the difference between success and failure for both Jim and Cassie.

And with Jim’s head start, the longer Travis stayed in the kitchen, the less time she’d have to make that difference.

In a desperate grab at the happiness that seemed to be slipping from her grasp, Meredith seized her husband’s face between both her hands and kissed him with all the love she’d stored up for him since she was ten years old. It only took a moment for Travis to recover from his shock and respond with equal fervor. Yet when she felt his arms wrap around her back and start to draw her close, she forced herself to tear away.

“Here,” she said, shoving the sandwiches at him as much to hurry him along as to keep herself from walking back into his arms. “Make sure your brothers eat.”

Then, before he could say anything else, she dodged around him and dashed down the hall to her room. Thumping the door closed behind her, she sagged against the wall and brushed a stray tear from her cheek while she waited for the telltale sound of Travis’s boots against the floorboards.

They came down the hall and paused. Meredith squeezed her eyes closed. Just go, Travis. Please.

After a long moment, the sound began again, this time fading as Travis crossed to the front door and finally exited onto the porch. His deep voice carried through the walls as he called to Crockett and Neill.

Regret ate at Meredith, and second thoughts flashed through her mind. Then a picture of Jim crystallized behind her closed lids—a picture of him falling to the ground, as still as death. Her eyes jerked open, and her throat closed on a gasp. He was in as much danger as Cassie, heading alone into what was sure to be a den of vipers. She might not be able to bring the cavalry, but she could at least supply him with enough inside information to help even the odds a bit.

And she could watch his back.

Meredith grabbed her cape from the wardrobe and moved to the window. Lord, keep him safe until I can catch up. Direct my steps and give me the courage to do what must be done. Guard Cassie and . . . She paused and shifted the curtain just enough to peer out into the yard, where her husband and his brothers were dispersing to their assigned positions. Help Travis forgive me.

She released the curtain and turned to leave the room, but when she passed the bureau, she remembered the small tablet of paper Travis kept in the top drawer along with his watch and other odds and ends. After digging out a stubby pencil, she scribbled the few words her raw heart demanded she say, then grabbed an old blanket from the chest and hurried through the house to the back door.

Once outside, she made for the creek without a single backward glance. Regrets were a luxury she could no longer afford.

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