LeClerc 01 - Autumn Ecstasy Page 10

  A muffled scream interrupted his thoughts. Moving with cautious speed, Bear reached for his rifle beside the open door, loaded it and stepped out into the snow. The setting sun turned the snow to a glittering pink. Looking carefully to the right and then left, he quickly realized there was no danger. The snow was unbroken except for the trail left by the arrival and departure of Wolf … and the path leading around the side of the cabin.

  Another muffled scream came from that direction, and Bear followed the trail. In places the snow had blown into drifts nearly waist high, and he wondered how Linsey had managed to wade through it. His greater weight sunk him ankle deep with each step.

  When he rounded the cabin, he was greeted by a sight that brought a smile to his lips. Two bare legs protruded from the snowbank. A bare foot waved frantically. Another muffled scream broke him from his amused trance, and he grabbed a handful of her dress and easily pulled her free.

  Linsey spit and sputtered, wiping the cold wetness from her face with one hand while holding firmly onto him with the other. When she could see again, her temper flared from the humor dancing in his eyes.

  “It … is … not… funny!” She stamped her foot, and snow fell from her hair, some of it going down the back of her dress.

  “I was just thinking I had never seen a more attractive snow … ah … woman.”

  “I want to go home … now!” Linsey turned from his grinning face to return to the cabin. Her battered dignity was further tested when her foot slipped and she would have fallen again had he not reached out and grabbed her.

  “In the spring,” Bear replied with a chuckle. “Surely you can see the grave dangers we would face should we begin the journey now.” His gaze traveled from the top of her wet head to her foot … her bare foot. “I would spend too much of my time pulling you out of snowbanks. We’d never get to our destination.”

  Raising her nose haughtily, Linsey stamped away, careful where she stepped so that she did not fall. Each time her bare foot stepped into the snow, she quickly lifted it, so that her usual graceful glide became reminiscent of a hop-step movement.

  “You did not gather the firewood,” Bear reminded her needlessly, retrieving her moccasin from several feet away.

  Stepping into the doorway, she turned disdainfully. “You’re outside. You get it.”

  His grin widened as he walked past her to the other side of the cabin. Linsey realized that the snow was not nearly as deep there. He walked only half the distance she had covered on the far side of the cabin and stopped before a place where the snow was mound nearly to the roof. Working quickly, he brushed it away, revealing a neatly stacked woodpile covered by a heavy canvas tar p.

  “The snow always piles up higher on the other side because there are no trees to cause a wind break.” He loaded his arms with logs and turned back to her. “I put the woodpile here so that it would stay drier.” He passed her in the doorway, a grin teasing the dimple in his cheek. “And so that I wouldn’t have to worry about falling down the slope on that side of the cabin.”

  “I’m going home!” Linsey slammed the door, testing the newly repaired hinge. “The divil take ye and yon snowbank. If I canna walk or float, then it’s wings I’ll sprout and fly myself home!”

  CHAPTER SIX

  An hour after going to bed, Linsey was still awake, wiggling on her make-shift bed. Finding a comfortable position on the hard table was impossible, she decided with a huff as she rolled from her back to her side. The remembered softness of the bed taunted her as she pulled a heavy fur up to her chin. Each time she moved, one of the furs or blankets started sliding to the floor, and she had to make a quick grab for it, which usually dislodged others.

  The discomfort did nothing toward improving her already frayed temper. The dip in the snowbank still rankled, and all evening she had searched for a way to release some of her frustration. Bear had given her no opposition when she tried picking an argument with him, thwarting her simply by being patient. Now, as she searched for sleep, unable to relax, she blamed it on the table … and the man who refused to be a gentleman and offer her the bed.

  Across the room, snug and warm in his massive bed, Bear listened to Linsey tossing and turning. Occasionally a muffled word reached him, and he judged her building temper as the unintelligible murmurs became distinct curses. He wondered how long her anger would burn before it either exploded or faded away. At the rate she was going, it would still be white hot in the morning!

  Bear rolled to his side so that he could watch her in the glow of the banked fire. In a short span of time, he watched as she turned from one side to the other and back again, grumbling each time she moved. His quiet sigh was one of resignation. If either of them was to get any sleep, she would have to find a release from her agitation.

  Had Linsey been able to see his eyes, she would have found a gleam of anticipation in them.

  The tranquil quiet in the small cabin held the promise of the calm before a storm, disturbed only as Linsey again changed positions. The fury of the storm broke over Bear’s head with his quiet words.

  “Take care, Wiggle Worm, or you will fall off your bed.”

  Worm? Linsey threw off the heavy fur, swung her legs over the side of the table and sat up. She stared into the corner and through the darkness could see a vague outline of his massive body. All evening she had waited for him to say something, anything, that would give her an excuse to unleash her anger. Worm wasn’t much, but it would do!

  She jumped down and began pacing the room, Gaelic curses flowing freely from her tongue. She had learned them from her father during one of his frequent bursts of temper. When she began repeating herself, she switched to English, easily remembering the flowery curses she had overheard at various times in her life.

  Bear waited patiently for a lull. He recognized the Gaelic for what it was but was unfamiliar with the language. However, her English was bruisingly clear, and he raised an eyebrow, a smile crossing his face at her colorful rantings.

  Linsey began to feel rather sheepish as the towering rage washed away.

  “Do you get angry very often?” Bear asked quietly. Linsey found herself at the foot of the bed and leaned against one of its tall posts. “I didn’t even know I had a temper until I was kidnapped.”

  “That is hard to believe, little one,” Bear replied with a chuckle.

  “One of the few things I can remember about my mother was her temper.” Linsey smiled, the memories happy ones. “My father seemed to enjoy her outbursts, and they always ended with both of them smiling at each other.” She pushed her tangled hair away from her face. “My father’s temper is almost legend in Philadelphia. But I really thought I hadn’t inherited it from either of them. I’ve never been angry until the afternoon Jeb and Zeke stopped our carriage.”

  The horror of that afternoon quickly erased the smile from her face. Sensing her change of mood, Bear sat up and held his hand out to her. “Come here, petit chat.”

  “Petit chat?” Linsey moved slowly toward him, her hand reaching for his.

  His big hand engulfed hers, and he pulled her to the edge of the bed. “You were hissing and spitting like a little kitten.”

  Once more, simply touching him brought a feeling of security to her. “I was angry,” she finally replied.

  “That is an understatement.” Bear chuckled. “What were you saying in … Gaelic, I believe?”

  She nodded affirmation as a roguish smile dimpled her cheeks. “I’m not sure exactly what I said. My father would never translate those particular words for me, though he did turn an attractive shade of red when I repeated them to him and asked their meaning.”

  Bear threw back his head and roared with laughter. Linsey joined in, her sense of humor quickly restored. He released her hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, hugging her tightly as they shared their amusement. Finding her face turned up to his, Bear bent and lightly kissed her lips. It was a natural reaction, without conscious thought. He meant it to go no fur
ther. But when his lips met hers, laughter was wiped from their faces. He raised his head, and their eyes met; and as he watched, the sparkle in hers was replaced by a startled, wary expression. His gaze lowered to her slightly parted Ups, and he was drawn to them by a force as powerful as life itself.

  Linsey raised her hands defensively to his bare chest, but any thought of resistance was drained away as her lips met his. It began as gently as a spring shower, his lips softly teasing hers, barely touching as they rubbed lightly back and forth. He deepened the kiss gradually as her lips parted. He nibbled lightly at her Ups, the tip of his tongue soothing the sensuous bites.

  The softness of his lips against hers and the warmth of his breath against her cheek made Linsey feel as if she were floating. It came as a shock when she realized he had picked her up and set her on his lap. It seemed natural for her hands to slide up his chest until her arms wrapped around his neck. Her fingers found their way into the long hair on his nape and teased at the thick strands.

  Taking care not to alarm her, wanting the magic to go on and on, Bear deepened the kiss further, carefully introducing her to the sensation of his tongue sampling the sweetness of her mouth.

  Linsey hesitantly met it with the tip of hers, feeling his startled reaction in the tightening of the muscles in his shoulders. She began to withdraw when his hand moved to the back of her head and lightly, but firmly, held her in place.

  Her long hair spread around her like a cape, and Bear tangled his hands in the silken curls. His moan was lost in her mouth when she innocently moved and her breasts flattened against his chest. Only the thickness of her deerhide dress separated their bodies — a fact that offered its own torment to Bear’s whirling thoughts.

  Linsey’s mind reeled at the new sensations running wild fire hot through her body. Touching him had always brought a feeling of security to her. Now it brought a different kind of feeling altogether as she lightly traced the tight muscles of his shoulders.

  She had grown accustomed to touching his scarred face and felt no hesitation in moving her hand from his neck to gently cup his cheek. He moaned softly at the touch and covered her hand with his, holding her palm against his cheek.

  Bear fought for control as he felt the heat raging through his body. Knowing he had to stop before it was too late, he slowly ended the kiss, withdrawing first his tongue and then easing the pressure of his lips against hers. He slowly, reluctantly, raised his head, his passion-filled eyes burning into hers.

  Linsey traced the three scars on his face, her fingers feather soft against the damaged skin. Bending slightly she placed light kisses along the length of each one. “Only flesh and bone. So badly hurt,” she murmured. Her hand returned to its place against his cheek.

  Bear shivered at the intensity of the feelings flowing through him. He knew how monstrous his face was. He could not take her caress lightly; to him it was almost a declaration.

  He pulled her hand from the back of his head and at the same time turned his face so that her palm covered his mouth. He worshipped her hand with his lips, lightly tracing the center with his tongue, before pulling both of them down to her lap.

  He had to clear his throat several times before he could speak, and then his voice was deeply raspy. “I think we should stop this and try to get some sleep.”

  Linsey felt bewildered. Why had he suddenly stopped kissing her? Had she been wrong to touch his cheek? She had not planned to do it, but it had felt so good, so natural, and she wanted him to know that she no longer feared his scars.

  Bear read the questions in her gaze and lightly traced the slope of her cheek. “That is only the beginning, sweet angel.”

  “The beginning of what?”

  His gaze roamed the molding of her face, and he softly kissed the end of her up-turned nose before picking her up off his lap and setting her on her feet. “The beginning of something you are not yet ready for.” He turned her toward the table and gave her a little push.

  “I hate it when people talk in riddles,” Linsey mumbled childishly as she climbed back up on the table.

  Bear’s hands clenched until the knuckles showed white as he fought the urge to take her back into his arms and show her exactly what he meant. But if he once loved her, made her his, he’d never take her back to the city. And he had no doubt that Linsey did not belong in his wilderness. Fourteen years of his mother’s gentle teachings forced him to relax and wait for sleep.

  It would be a long winter, with many days of them snowed in together. The cabin was tiny even for One person. How long could he resist her … and himself?

  Linsey sat at the table, her chin in her hand, her elbow against the rough wood surface. She watched intently as Bear shaved the week’s growth of hair from his face. Using the now razor sharp knife, he quickly dispensed with the smooth side of his face and worked slowly on the time-consuming scarred side. The hair had grown quite long in only a week and had begun to cover the scars.

  “Why do you bother to shave?” Linsey was finally forced to ask, after he had cut himself for the third time. “It takes forever, and you appear to be adding more scars.”

  “It doesn’t take nearly as long if I do it every day.” He contorted his face, looked into the small mirror and resumed shaving.

  “A beard would cover the worst of the scars,” she commented innocently.

  Bear stopped, lowered the knife and turned to her. “Even covered with hair, they would still be there, little one. I will not hide something that is a part of me. Nee lah e nee nee Idh, I am that I am.”

  “It’s really not that bad.”

  He raised a dark eyebrow in her direction. “It was enough to scare you witless the first time you saw it.”

  “At that point anything would have scared me witless! In fact, at that point I was witless.” She stood and walked over to him. Raising a hand, Linsey lightly touched the scar. “I think your imagination has made it more than it is. If you scare children, it’s probably more because of your size than your face.” She looked up impishly, her hand resting on his cheek.

  Bear gritted hi6 teeth as her innocent touch sent far from innocent thoughts racing through his mind. His voice was far harsher than he intended as he fought to control the urge to crush her in his arms.

  “If you will move your hand, I can finish this task sometime today.”

  Linsey lowered her hand. “I’m sorry, I didn’t — “

  “I know, sweet.” He turned back to the mirror and grimaced at the traces of blood from the nicks he had inflicted on himself. “Why don’t you open the package Wolf brought while I finish this?”

  Linsey picked up the package from the floor and set it on the table. Using the knife Bear had given her, she worked open the knotted thong tying it closed. Inside was a heavy coat similar to Bear’s only much smaller. The fur side was out, the longish hair hanging thick and sleek. Linsey slipped it on, delighted by its warmth. She swirled around in circles until she was dizzy, laughing when she had to grab the table to steady herself.

  “Put on the leggings, and we will see what the outside world has to offer.”

  Linsey reluctantly removed the coat and reached for the bulky pieces of fur. She tried unsuccessfully to wrap them around her legs, and as she began to lace them they slid down her slender leg.

  Wiping the traces of lather from his face, Bear grinned when he heard the muttered Gaelic. Taking pity on her, and himself, he knelt on the dirt floor at her feet and lifted the shoe-encased foot onto his bent leg. He tried to ignore the warm flesh beneath his hands as he quickly tightened the thong.

  “Sit still or I’ll never get these things laced.” Bear grinned as Linsey wiggled like a small child, impatient with the stubborn pieces of fur, wanting only to be outside.

  With a happy sigh, Linsey stood when he had finished, grabbed the hooded, fur coat and headed for the door. Bear’s grin widened at the absurdity of her clothing and her innocent acceptance of it; the leather shoes combined with the dress, coat and leggin
gs of the Shawnee. Her long hair, coiled like a rope and knotted through itself, peeked from beneath the hood.

  Linsey opened the door, breathing deeply of the crisp, clean air. Only when she had taken a few steps outside did she remember the dangers that waited for someone who was not familiar with the terrain. She turned pleading eyes toward Bear, silently asking him to come out with her.

  Grabbing his coat, Bear accepted the silent invitation. He, too, was unaccustomed to the enforced inactivity and needed to feel the sun against his face.

  “You lead; I’ll follow,” Linsey stated as he walked toward her.

  “What if I lead you off a cliff?”

  “Since you’ll fall first, I’ll just have to be sure to land on top of you!”

  Bear chuckled and headed down the path. He had no destination in mind, just enjoying the freedom from the cabin.

  Linsey walked behind Bear, snuggled deeply into the coat. The only sound was the crisp crunch of the snow beneath their feet and the occasional plop of snow dropping from the limbs above them.

  The giant trees seemed to reach for the deep blue sky. The sun sparkled on the snow like untold numbers of fabulous jewels, so bright it hurt their eyes. Linsey stopped to look at an ice-encased bush, its remaining leaves covered in a layer of sparkling crystals.

  When Bear no longer heard her accompanying footsteps, he turned and watched as she stared in fascination. One hand appeared from the sleeve of the enveloping coat to trace the ice formation that hung from the bush. Her childish enthusiasm touched a deeply buried longing in him, and he smiled gently as he watched.

  Linsey turned and answered his smile with an impish one of her own. Just as she started to move toward him, a ball of snow from the trees above fell and landed in her face. Linsey spit and sputtered with surprise and yelped as some of the icy wetness found its way down her neck and under the fur.