Ruthless Heart Read online

  “Wait, Mrs. Wolfe, take the money your husband left. It ain’t right me keeping it and all, especially with his Ma being so sick.”

  Eliza took the proffered money from the livery man. “Yes, it’s a shame, isn’t it? He’s been worried sick.” What kind of game was Grady playing?

  “I expect he was trying to catch up to his sister and aunt. Way he tells it, they’re stubborn enough to try to travel alone.” Mr. Hansen shook his head. “If I were them, I’d be worried about what he’s going to do them when he does find them.”

  Dread coiled in the pit of her stomach at the reminder of exactly what Grady was doing and who he was chasing. He had obviously found Angeline’s trail, and she was still traveling with Lettie, Josiah’s second wife. She’d suspected they had left together, but given Mr. Hansen’s retelling of Grady’s tall tale, now she was sure they had.

  “Mr. Wolfe is simply worried about them. I-I’m sure they’ll be glad of his assistance as they travel to the family homestead.” She didn’t know what she was talking about but knew she had to find out as much information as she could.

  “Yep, he did look right worried. I was glad I knew they’d gotten a ride with Randy over to Bowson.” He tucked his hands in his trouser pockets. “He’s a good man, but your husband is right to be worried about his kin.”

  His kin. Wasn’t that a twist of the information? She wanted to shout it was her sister that was in danger, but didn’t want to cause any more issues for herself.

  “Again thank you for your help, Mr. Hansen.” Eliza mounted Cab with ease using the block of wood, amazed by how far she’d come in less than two weeks.

  “You’re welcome, Mrs. Wolfe. Hey, you’re not planning on following your husband alone, are you?”

  Eliza’s grin was more like a feral baring of her teeth. “Of course, I am. What wife wouldn’t follow her husband when he needed her most?”

  She left the sputtering livery man and headed back to the hotel. Then she’d get some food supplies using the money Grady had left her and be on her way within thirty minutes.

  It was time for the apprentice to surprise the teacher.

  Grady stopped only two more times to rest his horse, riding until it was too dark to see his hand in front of his face. Only a fool would risk injuring his horse in the rough terrain. He could act like a fool sometimes, but when it came to his horse, he’d temper his urgency with logic.

  Logic told him to stop and sleep. If he was able to sleep of course. There was some shelter behind a large group of boulders ahead. It would provide shelter from the wind and allow him a vantage point to see anyone approaching the camp.

  As he unsaddled his horse, his mind wandered to Eliza. Even though he didn’t want to think about her, apparently, he had no choice in the matter. He wondered how Eliza had handled his departure, whether she’d gotten angry or sad. Maybe she’d even taken the money and rode the other direction.

  His worse fear was her hieing off after him as she’d done before. This time, he had anticipated the woman’s resourcefulness and rode through terrain that would leave no tracks to follow. Bullseye also had new shoes, which meant she couldn’t use the trick of following the shoe prints with a nick.

  He was impressed it took a lot of effort to actually throw Eliza off his trail. She was damn smart, and not just book smart either. She had good instincts and a sharp eye for detail. If he wasn’t hired to kill the people he tracked, they could be very good together in the bounty hunting business.

  That was neither here nor there. The truth was, he’d left her behind, and that was that. Grady would never see Eliza again.

  The realization hit him like a gut punch, and he sat on a smaller rock from the impact. He hadn’t said goodbye or even kissed her sleeping cheek. It proved what kind of man he was, that was for sure. Not the kind to marry a woman like Eliza.

  Jesus, he needed to stop thinking about her and start thinking about who he was supposed to be hunting. Angeline Brown was a wily target for a woman, but the fact she’d stuck with the older woman proved she wasn’t as wily as she should have been. They would have done better by splitting up, but considering her age and lack of experience, he understood the need to rely on the other woman.

  From what he knew, they had headed to Bowson two days earlier. It was a smaller town than most, and folks riding in and out would be fewer, which meant less opportunity for someone to offer them a ride. He assumed they had little funds, so perhaps they would stay in town for a while, maybe earn some money in one way or another. Bowson was a three-day ride, which meant they’d be getting there tomorrow.

  He’d ridden so hard, he’d get there in just over two days, and hopefully, surprise them. That’s what Grady was counting on. From what Tim Hansen had told him, they’d relied on others for help and had settled for a meal they’d split between them at Ana’s. No doubt they were hungry, scared, and nearing on desperation.

  The perfect opportunity for the wolf to catch his prey.

  After taking care of his horse, he laid out his bedroll without starting a fire. No need to advertise where he was camping for the night. Yet another precaution against the resourceful Eliza, and any other two-legged or four-legged creature that might be about in the blackness of the night.

  When his head finally hit the bedroll, Eliza’s scent surrounded him. He cursed loud and long as he realized there was almost no escaping her. She had crawled under his skin, and dammit all to hell, into his heart.

  He didn’t want to love Eliza, didn’t want to believe he was capable of such a weak emotion. Women and trust didn’t mix; there wasn’t much else to offer her. Yet he’d gone and done something so monumentally stupid, he wanted to kick his own ass.

  Grady rubbed his bedroll up and down the horse’s withers, then in the sand to rid himself of her scent. He shook it to get rid of the excess gravel, then took a whiff. His loco idea took care of the scent and added a ripe, not-so-sweet one instead.

  By the time he lay down for the second time, his eyes were as gritty as the blanket. His heart, however, was beating again. An organ he’d long since given up on had come to life because of a mousy spinster schoolmarm with beautiful blue eyes and the courage of a lion.

  He ground his fists against his eyes, telling himself the stinging was due to the sand and nothing else. Grady wrapped himself up in his now smelly bedroll and closed his eyes.

  It was a long, lonely night for the lone wolf.

  Eliza rode Cab at a steady pace toward Bowson. With directions from Ana and a sack full of food, she set out after Grady. She had to find him before he found Angeline, before everything crumbled into dust, before she lost him for good.

  Oh, she wasn’t fooling herself into thinking a happy ending was possible. Even if she had indulged in one of those romantic books, which lay at the bottom of her bag, if she were honest, she had no qualms about accepting that there was a very slim chance at a future with Grady.

  First, he was a bounty hunter, and second, she’d lied to him from the moment she’d met him. Obviously, he’d been doing his fair share of lying too, but what they did with their bodies, what she felt in her heart, was no lie.

  She loved Grady Wolfe, and she was certain he loved her in return. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have left her all that money, or made sure she was taken care of before he rode off. Oh no, his actions told her there was hope, and she was holding onto it for dear life.

  Angeline’s return to Josiah Brown would prove to be a sticking point between them. Grady would need to agree to give up whatever he’d been paid, or would be paid, for bringing her back. She wasn’t sure if Lettie had a bounty on her head as well, but regardless of that, he had been sent to find Angeline. If he loved Eliza, he would understand why he couldn’t bring her sister back.

  Josiah Brown was a monster who pretended to be human. He had beaten Angeline from the moment he’d married her, leaving her bruised and bloody on their wedding night. When Eliza had arrived the next morning, she’d been heartbroken to se
e what had been done to her beautiful, vivacious sister. Eliza had tried to think of a way to undo what had been done when Angeline and Josiah spoke their vows, but hadn’t yet come up with a solution.

  Then Angeline had run with Lettie, and everything had changed. Eliza had found out quite by accident that Josiah had hired of Grady Wolfe to find her. Eavesdropping was a bad habit, but she’d considered it to be a necessary device when she’d dealt with someone as evil as Josiah.

  Eliza had to make Grady understand just how much danger Angeline would be in if he brought her back to Josiah. There was no doubt in Eliza’s mind that her sister would die within a few days of her return to the Brown household. No one dared stand up to the great Josiah, who held sway over all the men in the ward.

  However, Eliza dared that and more. She had thrown away her entire life to help her sister, and along the way, she’d discovered who she really was and had fallen in love with a man she should never have met.

  Before, life had been so simple, so uncomplicated…and so stifling. Leaving Tolson had been like a metamorphosis for Eliza. She was no longer the ugly caterpillar living on a tree branch and waiting to be something else. Instead, she’d become a butterfly, a thing of beauty, with wings to soar above the drudgery and escape the misery.

  For that, Eliza would be grateful to her teacher, who had given her the books and instruction to survive. And to Grady, who had taught her to fly.

  Eliza’s determination drove her to ride Cab alone all day and into the night. She didn’t see a fire or even a single speck of evidence that Grady had passed the same way. Yet she knew it, deep down in her heart, he’d been there.

  Exhausted but proud of her journey, she stopped for the night near a stream with cool, clear water. The fresh shoe prints in the muck told her someone had been there earlier that day. She could only hope it had been Grady and that her path was the right one.

  After making Cab comfortable, she put her bedroll down on a bed of pine needles and lay down to rest. As soon as her head touched the blanket, Grady’s scent surrounded her. She breathed in deeply, bringing him into her lungs, into her body. The strength and purpose she had started with that day only grew greater within her.

  As she closed her eyes, she imagined it was his arms around her, and not the blanket that held the ghost of his scent. Sleep came easy as she felt secure within the arms of the man she loved.

  Grady woke with a start, feeling as though he’d just closed his eyes. The sun was just painting the horizon pink, and dawn was only a few minutes away. He dragged himself up and broke camp quickly, eager to be on his way.

  As he saddled his horse, he had vague recollections of dreaming about Eliza, about holding her in his arms and pressing his nose into her hair. If only the damn bedroll hadn’t smelled like her, he wouldn’t be in such a fix.

  He rode hard again, trying to outrun his thoughts and his memories, not that it worked. He exhausted himself again, yet when he finally slept the next night, he again dreamed of Eliza.

  By the time he woke up on the third day, he was almost relieved to see her standing in front of him. Her old brown dress was now in rags, her face lined with dirt, and she sported bags under her exhausted-looking eyes. Her hair had seen better days and was currently sticking every which way under her battered hat.

  She stood with her hands on her hips and wore a look of pure satisfaction on her face. “I thought maybe you forgot something.” She tossed the two golden eagles in the dirt in front of him. “I am not for sale, and I won’t accept payment for sharing your bed.”

  Grady thought at first he was dreaming, but then the coins kicked up a cloud of dust that tickled his nose. Jesus Christ, how the hell had she found him?

  “Liz, go home.” He rose to his feet, ignoring the coins. Having Eliza stand over him gave him an uneasy feeling he didn’t like.

  “I have no home to return to. You are currently the closest thing I have to a family in this world, and you left me behind as if I was a saloon whore you had sex with.” She sucked in a breath, which sounded more like a sob. “I gave you my trust, my body, and my heart. All of which you just threw back in my face as if they were worthless. To make matters worse, instead of being completely angry with you, I find myself wishing you would take me in your arms and kiss me.”

  Grady should have turned his back, should have made tracks away from her. But he didn’t. In fact, he was so stupidly happy to see her, he did exactly what she wanted.

  He took her in his arms and kissed her.

  They were both dirty, covered with two or three days of dried sweat, but it was the sweetest kiss he’d ever shared with her.

  She tucked her head into the crook of his neck, and he realized she was crying. Eliza had shed tears for him.

  He was completely dumbfounded by the notion. This woman who had braved hell and back to not only ride by herself, but track him twice, was crying over him. Grady had never had anyone shed even a single tear for him.

  Eliza was crying buckets.

  His throat closed up as he sat down on the rock with Eliza firmly attached to his side. Leaving her behind had been a mistake; his heart and mind finally agreed on that. He’d left because he’d wanted to find his quarry, finish the job, and get his money. Yet he had abandoned the one person in the world who cared if he lived or died. The one person who cried for him.

  “I’m quite angry with you.” Her voice was muffled against his neck.

  “I realize that.”

  “You’ve got a lot of explaining, and I daresay, apologizing to do.” She swiped at her cheeks, and he saw the dirt and water mixture coat her hand. “We had an agreement, you and I, and you broke it. I did everything you asked, including cooking, cleaning, and sharing your bed. Although I didn’t expect a marriage proposal, I did expect common courtesy.”

  He cringed at the tongue lashing she was meting out. “Okay, enough already. I get it, Liz. I am a poor excuse for a pretend husband and a lousy son of a bitch.”

  She was quiet for a moment. “Well I don’t know if I’d sink so low as to call you derogatory names.”

  “Then I did it for you.” He pulled her to a sitting position and tugged off her hat so he could look her in the eyes, watery as they were. “You have to know I ain’t one of the good guys.”

  “I never thought you were a knight on a white steed.” She sniffed. “I did think you were good at heart though, or rather I do believe it.”

  He could hardly swallow that bit of information. She thought he was good at heart? What the hell ever gave her that idea? He was a nasty bastard, literally and figuratively, who did what he could to survive, including killing people for money.

  “Then that makes one of you.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Liz, I ain’t worth your tears.” If he’d ever told her the truth, this was the most honest he’d ever been.

  “I’ll be the judge of that. You continue to be my travelling companion, promise not to leave me behind ever again, and I will forgive you.” She shook her head. “I cannot explain the whys of how things occur, but I will accept them if all evidence points to them as the truth.”

  “What the hell does that mean? Don’t rattle my brain with your fancy talk, woman, just tell me in plain words.” He hated feeling dumb around her, but every time she opened her mouth, every other word was lost on him.

  “What I’m trying to say, unsuccessfully of course, is that I’ve fallen in love with you.”

  Grady didn’t even remember getting up, but suddenly he was ten feet from her, and her mouth was open in an “O” of surprise.

  “What?”

  “You heard me quite well apparently, judging by how quickly you just moved.” She rose and walked toward him with deliberate, slow steps. “I love you, Grady Wolfe, whether or not you want to accept my words. There is absolutely nothing you can do to change how I feel. I accept it as the truth and trust that my heart knows what it’s doing.”

  “Oh, sure as hell it doesn’t know a damn thing if
it’s fallen in love with me.” Grady could hardly swallow the gigantic lump in his throat. He didn’t want her love, the responsibility of it, or the realization he likely felt the same way about her.

  He stumbled over some loose stones as he backed away from her. “Liz, honey, you need to set your sights on someone a little more reputable. Some farmer with a nice couple of acres, have a passel of kids, grow old and safe with him.”

  She pressed her palm against his frantic heart, and his body cried out for more of her touch. He felt as if he’d fallen head first into a twister, and he’d be lucky to get out alive and in one piece.

  “I don’t want to live on a farm with some other man. The only man I want in my bed, or my bedroll, is you. As for children, the same holds true. I cannot imagine holding any babies unless they have your eyes.”

  This time he fell on his ass into the dirt, his mouth opening and closing but no sound coming out. Eliza was loco, plain and simple. He couldn’t be the man she wanted.

  “I can’t,” was all he managed to whisper hoarsely.

  She knelt beside him and cupped his face with her small hands. “Oh, yes, you can. We can do anything our minds and hearts want us to do. I love you Grady, and I believe you love me. Whether we’re riding through the prairie, or tucked beside a fire in a small mountain cabin, I want to be with you for the rest of my life.”

  This time when she kissed him, Grady felt something inside him burst, as if a dam of hurt and fear and fury had burst. It careened through him, leaving behind a shell of a man whose heart beat for the woman in front of him.

  This time when their cheeks pressed together, he couldn’t tell who the tears came from.

  They slept for a few hours, spooned together and content. Grady needed the sleep. Considering he’d spent two days in the saddle, he was beyond exhausted. She was obviously just as tired because she’d caught up to him, which meant she’d ridden harder than he had.

  The sun was high in the sky before they woke. After some simple ablutions, he built a fire so they could have a proper meal. After he had the fire blazing, he couldn’t find Eliza. He knew she hadn’t gone far, but she wasn’t within sight.