Devils on Horseback: Nate Read online

  “Your turn for listening.” His hot breath coated her face with the sweet smell of pipe tobacco. “You have no right to attack me, cut me or try to force me into anything. No one does, do you hear me?”

  The sheer fury in his voice scared her. Someone had warned her that soldiers don’t take kindly to violence, but she’d shrugged it off. Her mistake.

  “I don’t answer to you for my actions or my choices. Now when I let you up, you’d best head on home before I turn you over my knee and paddle your ass.”

  Elisa didn’t say a word. She was stuck on the image of Nate spanking her.

  “Do you hear me?”

  This time instead of speaking, Elisa leaned up and captured his lips in a fierce kiss. Her first actually, giving or receiving, and what a kiss it was. His lips were as hard as the rest of him, unyielding to her assault. She let her instincts guide her and softened the pressure until he relented. Then, heaven shone for a moment in the darkness of a Texas forest.

  Sweet delicious kiss. One moment anger, the next the world shifted and Elisa understood what it meant to be alive. His tongue laved her lips, a tickle that she answered by opening her mouth. He invaded like a conqueror, sweeping across her teeth, her tongue, the roof of her mouth. She moaned into his mouth as her nipples hardened, as eager and hungry as the rest of her.

  As the pleasure reached a new height, Elisa pushed her pussy upwards, grinding the aching part of her against the obviously aroused part of him. He trembled for just a moment before he ripped his mouth away from hers, breathing ragged as if he’d run a race.

  “What the hell was that? Did you think that by offering yourself to me, I’d tell you what you want to know? I don’t take advantage of desperate young women, no matter how desperate I am.”

  When he stood, her body cried out from the loss of heat, from the loss of him. He stalked off downstream, away from her. She was practically vibrating from a million different feelings, none of which she knew the first thing about.

  “Go home, little girl. I don’t have anything for you.”

  His raspy voice scratched at her tender ears. Elisa was left in the darkness alone with a throbbing body and an aching heart.

  Nate hardly slept a wink. Between Elisa’s surprise attack and the job they’d agreed to perform for O’Shea, his brain simply would not stop thinking. It ran through a hundred different plans for how to remove the Taggerts. Unfortunately the rest of him was completely focused on the woman.

  Elisa.

  God, she’d felt like paradise beneath him. Perfectly formed, Elisa certainly hid a wealth of womanly charms beneath her baggy, manly clothes. Her breasts were full and round with nipples that his chest still remembered vividly, her hips round and curvy with enough to hang on to for the ride.

  It would have been the ride of his life if he’d continued even a second longer. As it was, his dick stayed hard for hours until he finally put it to sleep with his hand. Her kiss was inexperienced, but her passion natural.

  Nate regretted the entire incident, especially the kiss. Now when they arrived at the Taggerts’ door, she had enough ammunition to cut him down at the knees. Dammit. If only she hadn’t kissed him, if only he hadn’t gone off by himself. If only, if only. He lay there most of the night speaking that phrase over and over in his head. It got him nothing but grainy eyes and a surly disposition.

  Even Lee seemed to sense that Nate was not to be fooled with. Everyone steered clear of him, more than likely because he’d barked at them the night before when he made it back to camp.

  Gideon appeared to understand. He handed Nate a mug of steaming black coffee and retreated to the other side of the fire.

  “Rough night?”

  Nate snorted. “You could say that.”

  “Money hasn’t changed hands yet. We can still say no to this job.” Gideon’s blue eyes were earnest with concern. “I think it’s been bothering you since you shook hands with O’Shea.”

  Gideon was, of course, exactly right. It had been bothering Nate, but that wasn’t important. Making D.H. Enterprises viable and putting food in their stomachs was.

  “We can’t say no, Gid. Not unless we want to starve.” He glanced at Zeke and Lee as they stood in the dewy grass, talking quietly, then at Jake as he fiddled with some kind of contraption on his saddle. “We’ve come too far, done too much, to stop now. St. Peter may question us when we get to the pearly gates, but for now, we put ourselves first. We’re all we’ve got.”

  Gideon nodded and took a gulp of his coffee. “I don’t disagree with anything you’ve said, Nate. I’m hungry too and I’m especially worried about Lee. If he doesn’t get rid of that chip on his shoulder, he’s going to get himself killed. Jake’s gonna end up in jail and Zeke will get shot busting him out.” He sighed. “You ready to get started today?”

  “No, but we’re gonna get started anyway.” Nate grinned. “Let’s fry up some of that bacon and use the soap I brought back so we can start the day with full bellies and sweet-smelling skin.”

  With a laugh, Gideon reached for the frying pan tucked into his saddlebags. Today would be an important day—everything had to go exactly right.

  Everything went wrong. In fact, everything that should have gone right, went horribly wrong.

  An older man Nate assumed was Sean Taggert sat outside of his home on a chair, whittling. He had graying dark brown hair, and the most haunted green eyes Nate had ever seen. The man glanced up at them, then went back to his whittling, as if he doubted the Devils existed.

  “Good morning, sir. Are you Sean Taggert?” Gideon asked.

  The old man focused on his handiwork and started mumbling under his breath. The sound of a rifle cocking was the only indication they weren’t alone.

  “Y’all better have a very good reason for being here,” Elisa shouted from somewhere behind them.

  “We just want to talk, Miss Taggert.” Nate swallowed hard.

  “Miss Taggert, is it?” she snorted. “You seem to have a short memory, Mr. Marchand. Your tongue was dancing with mine about twelve hours ago, or don’t you remember?”

  Gideon looked disappointed. Lee looked murderous. Jake looked impressed while Zeke didn’t appear affected at all.

  “What the hell does that mean?” Lee hissed. “You were fucking the girl we’re supposed to throw off this place?”

  “I didn’t do anything to her,” Nate whispered. “Now shut up a minute, would you?”

  “Elisa, can you please come down here and talk to us?” Nate was pleased his voice didn’t shake. God knew the rest of him was shaking enough to set Bonne Chance on edge. The sorrel moved restlessly beneath him. He tried unsuccessfully to dislodge the lump in his throat.

  A shot pinged off the rock to their left. Every one of the horses stayed put, as battle-trained equine do. However, the Devils all appeared to be ready to attack if one more shot was fired. Nate wished he had the courage to take a drink from his canteen because his mouth had never felt so dry. However, drinking would be a sign of weakness, something he never showed to an enemy. Elisa now fell into the ranks of an enemy.

  “Get your sorry asses out of here.” Elisa’s voice was as sharp as a knife. “Tell O’Shea he can stick that deed up his fat ass. This is Taggert land.”

  Gideon’s mouth pinched in a tight, white line. He stared at Nate, apparently waiting for him to make the decision. Nate wanted to howl in frustration. How could one kiss completely sabotage their first job?

  “You know we’ll be back, Elisa,” he finally ground out. “You can’t keep us away forever. We outnumber you, we outgun you and we have unlimited money to fight you. Are you sure you want this?”

  She laughed. “I don’t give a shit if you have a hundred men with cannons. The only way I’m leaving this land is in a pine box. Now git.”

  Another rifle shot sounded and the bullet went straight through Nate’s
hat. It flew through the air and landed by the old man’s feet. Grinding his teeth, Nate dismounted. Just as he reached for it, Sean slammed his foot down, grinding it into the mud beneath his boot. Then without a word, he went back to whittling, his boot firmly planted on Nate’s now ruined hat.

  “Son of a bitch,” he cursed under his breath. “Family of lunatics. Can’t wait to meet the brother.”

  Nate nodded at Gideon and the five of them rode back the way they came, empty-handed and angry.

  * * * * *

  Elisa let out the breath she’d been holding. She watched as Nate and his four large, angry-looking friends rode off. She’d almost had heart palpitations when she saw them looming over Da, who sat there like a bump on a log with five armed men in front of him. He lived in his own world so much, Elisa had been worried about him. Now she was terrified for him. He hadn’t been even remotely interested in the men.

  A big mistake. A huge one. Elisa assumed the too-handsome Nate worked for O’Shea, so she’d be more prepared to deal with him. If she hadn’t been coming back from night watch, Da would have faced them all alone. She and Daniel would have to move the herd even closer than before.

  Time to close the ranks and protect themselves. Even if that meant against Nate, the first man to make her heart flutter. Too bad she had to nearly shoot his head off. He’d not likely be forgiving of that particular sin, and she wasn’t about to go running into his arms.

  She sighed as the five men disappeared on the horizon, then she realized they were headed for the herd—and her fourteen-year-old brother. Eliza leapt to her feet and onto Midnight.

  “Hiya! Go, go, go!” She hunkered down low, racing through the trees. She had to beat them to the herd to protect them and Daniel. Branches slapped at her face as she flew past, the cuts stinging and some oozing blood down her cheeks. It didn’t matter. None of it mattered except for family.

  Elisa burst into the clearing where Daniel sat watching the placid herd. A few lowed at her as she galloped past. He saw her coming and met her halfway across the field. Daniel had the look of their father, with dark brown hair and green eyes, and a build that sat long and lanky on an adolescent body. The promise of a man to come made him appear like a puppy whose paws were too big for its thin body.

  “Riders coming. Push the herd back toward the north end of the house. We’ll stop them with the cattle they came here to steal.”

  “Are you sure?” He eyed the fat bovines uncertainly.

  “Of course I’m sure. Haven’t I taken care of you for the last three years? Listen to me, Daniel Taggert. If you want to save our ranch, our family and our lives, we need to move. Now.”

  She pulled Midnight around and headed for the right side of the herd and started urging them forward. Luckily, Daniel listened to her and pushed the herd from the left side.

  Within five minutes, they were moving at a good pace, not panicked or uncontrollable. A herd of longhorns two hundred head strong was enough to stop anyone. As they rounded the bend near the forest, Elisa caught a glimpse of the five riders in the distance. They reined in their horses and watched as the cattle headed toward them.

  Obviously they hadn’t dealt much with longhorns or they would’ve moved immediately. A brief hiccup of guilt surfaced, but Elisa blew it away on the wind. They were playing a deadly game with her family’s lives and future, she’d play by the same rules.

  * * * * *

  “Shit.”

  “Is that your girlfriend I see pushing a herd of longhorns at us?” Lee scowled at him. “What is she, a demon from the bowels of Hades?”

  Nate squirmed in his saddle, wishing he could start the day over again. “Could be. Right now I’d say we need to get out of the way so we don’t get trampled by them.”

  He could see Elisa on one side of the herd, on the other he assumed was her brother. They deliberately moved the cattle to stop the Devils from reaching them or her brother. He’d underestimated Elisa Taggert. She was a sharp opponent. Razor sharp.

  The sound of eight hundred hooves moving toward them vibrated in Nate’s chest. The sheer power of even such a small herd was not lost on him. He hadn’t any experience with large animals except horses and milk cows, nothing like the horned beasts coming straight for them. The rest of his friends appeared as shocked as he was. They turned and galloped away from the cattle.

  Nate could almost hear Elisa smiling and his frustration knew no bounds. No doubt the rest of the Devils would let him know how displeased they were with the results of their first day’s outing. Nate’s stomach roiled and bile crept up his throat. He hated not being in control and if there was anything Elisa did to him, it was threaten his control. Of everything.

  “Smart girl,” Gideon shouted.

  “That’s an understatement,” Jake piped in. “If you’re done with her, Nate, let me know. She’s my kind of girl.”

  “Shut up, fool.” Lee shot Jake a dirty look. “Nobody needs to be in that girl’s drawers.”

  “So says you.” Jake winked.

  “Gid, can I kick his ass?”

  “Lee, give it a rest. Geez, can you not be angry for two minutes? Let’s swing around back to the house and talk to her father again. At least we know she won’t shoot at us while she’s busy with the herd.” Gideon looked at Nate. “Not an auspicious beginning.”

  “I realize that. I don’t know how things got so… I didn’t intend…” He groped for the right words, but couldn’t find them. It felt like an army of ants had landed on his skin and were busy biting the hell out of him.

  “I know.” Gideon glanced back at the herd. “I expect we’re not the first men to be confounded by that woman, otherwise O’Shea wouldn’t have hired us.”

  Sounded like the gospel truth to Nate, but it didn’t make it any easier to swallow.

  They rode back in silence to the house, but when they arrived, the old man was gone. A quick check of the house did not reveal his whereabouts. It seemed that the Taggerts had won the first battle, but the war had just begun.

  Chapter Four

  When the Devils arrived back at their camp, dirty and beyond frustrated, they had company waiting for them. Unwelcome company.

  Captain Elliot Nessman stood next to his thoroughbred horse, his blue Army uniform blinding in the bright sunlight. His narrow face and pointy nose had always reminded Nate of a weasel. Nessman’s tactics during their brief imprisonment under his command had solidified that opinion. Although he’d released them after the treaties had been signed, Captain Nessman had made it his God-given duty to put them back behind bars again. Legally or illegally.

  Lee cursed under his breath. Gideon shushed him and shot a telling glance to Zeke. Without a word being exchanged, Zeke led Lee toward the stream, away from the volatile situation.

  Gideon was the first to break the silence. “Captain Nessman, I didn’t know they let your kind into Texas.”

  “I asked for the duty. You see, it’s people like me who will make this country safe from marauders such as yourselves.” The crisp Boston accent sounded just plain wrong in the south.

  “What business do you have with us, Captain?” Nate didn’t think the day could get any worse. Boy how he’d been proved wrong.

  “Always the gentleman with manners, eh, Marchand? It just so happens that we had a complaint of squatters ‘round here. Look who I found squatting. My favorite group of confederate raiders.” He spread his arms. “I’m sure you have permission to be on this land.”

  “As a matter of fact, we do, Captain. We are under the employ of Mr. Samuel O’Shea. You are more than welcome to confirm that with him at his ranch.” Nate pointed to the north. “It’s approximately one half hour due north. I’m sure you’ve heard of Mr. O’Shea.”

  Nessman’s demeanor changed from cocky to angry in the blink of an eye. “I don’t believe you.”

  “That’s unfortunate
, because it’s the truth.” Nate felt a certain measure of satisfaction that they’d trumped Nessman’s ace.

  Nessman threw himself up onto his horse a bit clumsily; the beautiful horse shied and pranced at the movement. “I’m going to confirm your story today. I will be watching you and every movement you make. You step one toe out of line with the law and I’ll have you in a federal prison before you know what happened.”

  “Of that I have no doubt.” Gideon watched the captain with a schooled expression.

  “You and your Devils on Horseback are bound to break the law sooner or later. It’s in your blood,” Nessman sneered.

  “Just as being an ass is in yours,” Jake mused.

  “Shut your mouth, you petty thief.” Nessman turned his steed toward the north. “You will be seeing me again soon.”

  Gideon raised one eyebrow. “Thanks for the warning.”

  With a final nasty look, Nessman rode off into the Texas morning, leaving behind more destruction than he knew.

  “What a fantastic morning we’ve had.” Nate dismounted with a leap. “Now all we need is a skunk in camp and the day will be complete.”

  “I think the skunk just left,” Jake quipped.

  Gideon and Nate both chuckled, the tension diffused somewhat.

  “At least Lee wasn’t here to get into a fistfight with him.” Nate knew Nessman would throw Lee in jail the moment he swung the first punch.

  “Nessman’s going to make this job harder than we thought. Especially knowing how hard Elisa Taggert is going to make it.” Gideon met Nate’s gaze. “We’re going to need to discuss strategy.”

  “I agree. Let’s get Zeke and have some dinner.”

  Like a well-trained troop, they all performed their assigned duties without being asked. Jake got water and made coffee, Lee built up the fire, Zeke prepared the food, Gideon cooked it and Nate distributed it. They’d done it a thousand times before. Now it was done without the urgency, but still with the deliberate actions of soldiers.