It was Becky who helped Sarah escape. She had to remember to thank her aunt properly one day, although she wasn’t sure how.

By nine-thirty it became obvious that her mother wasn’t going to bed until after her daughter was in bed, and asleep. So Becky fixed her sister a hot toddy, and she fell asleep in her chair within seconds.

Now, as Sarah hurried out the door, she thanked the heavens above for the people who were helping her, for the people who wanted her and Josh to be together, for the people who knew that it was right.

She should have found some way to get out to see Josh earlier this afternoon. After all, his love was the most important thing to her. She needed to make sure she didn’t do anything to damage that love.

She was barely to the front gate when a dark figure stepped forward. She gasped as the man came into the moonlight, a grin on his face.

“Ben.” She put her hand on her chest. “You frightened me.”

“Josh wanted to come, but if your mother saw him it would be bad. With me, I could just say I was the sheriff out looking to make sure everything was fine for the night.”

“Thank you so much.”

“Hurry,” he said with a wink. “I’ll keep watch, then Josh and I will escort you back home later. I’ve given him an hour, and if he tries something untoward, you let me know and I’ll give him a good punch.”

She laughed and tried to keep up with his long strides. “Meeting him alone, after dark, isn’t untoward on my part?”

“Not when you’re going to marry him,” Ben said. “Now if he was being familiar, I would say yes. But I know you two just need a little time alone.”

She wanted to ask Ben if he knew that she was about to be spanked for disobeying Josh’s order to come to the store this afternoon. But then she decided it would be too personal. Still, if Ben thought it was untoward, maybe he could protect her from being spanked. She laughed, and then decided that wasn’t going to happen.

“Something funny?” He stopped at the side of the store and indicated that she should go up the stairs before him.

“No. I’m just happy to be going to see Josh. Thank you, Ben, for escorting me.”

“My pleasure, baby sister.”

She warmed at his words, then lifted on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

“I’ll be back in about an hour,” he said. “You be ready to go home by then.”

“I will be.”

When she got to the top of the stairs, Josh was already opening the door. He ushered her inside, then hugged her tight, his lips claiming hers in a passionate kiss.

“Don’t be kissing my brother.” There was mischief in his voice.

“I kissed his cheek, to thank him for coming to get me.”

Josh sighed heavily. “I wanted to do it, but I was afraid your mother would see me hanging around outside. She’s like a bulldog.”

He kissed her again and stroked her cheeks with his thumbs. “How was your evening?”

“It would have been better if I’d spent it with you. How about yours?”

“Same thing. I worked on the books, and counted the hours until I could do this.”

When he kissed her again, his tongue pushed against her lips. She opened them freely, welcoming him inside her mouth, relishing the warm feeling that spread through her. Her nipples tightened and the V between her legs moistened. She moaned into his mouth and he deepened the kiss.

“Sarah.” He whispered her name against her lips and sucked her lower lip into his mouth.

“Joshua. I want to marry you right now, this very minute.”

His laughter was infectious. “Shall I go wake up the preacher? I’m sure he’d do it for us.”

He continued to kiss her, his lips soft and sensuous against her own.

“If I thought we would get away with it, I’d say yes. But you know it won’t work.”

His lips moved to the tip of her nose, kissing her quickly, then pulling back.

“You’re right. Soon, though, we’ll be together.”

He walked to the table and held up two sheets of paper. She hurried over to him and read them, then sighed.

“My mother will figure out what’s happened when my father shows up and asks why she didn’t answer his telegrams.”

“They never arrived,” Josh said with a grin. “The telegram service is very unreliable.”

“Liar.” She lowered her eyes, then looked back at him. “He’ll send more.”

“And they will be intercepted. Soon they’ll have no choice but to come and see for themselves what is happening. When that occurs, I’ll tell your father that you and I will be married.”

“Maybe we should just run away together. If I get pregnant soon after we wed, there will be nothing father can do.”

Josh pulled her close to him. “As much as I love the thought of my child growing inside you, I won’t run from him unless there’s no other choice. I’ll fight for you, Sarah, until the very end.”

“I know you will. I’m so sorry about this afternoon.”

“Yes, we need to talk about that before Ben comes back. You were a naughty girl for disobeying me.”

“My mother knows we were alone together yesterday. She said if I did anything like it again she’d take me back to St. Louis on the next train.”

“And you should trust me not to let that happen.” He kissed her forehead. “Perhaps a good spanking will remind you to think of me, and our love, when she threatens you.”

Sarah nodded. “Yes. It was wrong of me, Josh. But please don’t spank me too hard.”

“I think maybe I didn’t spank you hard enough last time. If I had, you wouldn’t have disobeyed me so quickly.”

Sarah’s breath caught in her throat. She didn’t like the way that sounded, and she tried to think of a good answer, but nothing came to her.

“Sarah? Do you agree with me on that?”

“No. And I don’t want to be spanked again.”

Josh studied her for a few minutes, and then sighed deeply. “I’ll make an arrangement with you. This spanking will be done with my hand, with you over my knee. We’ll see if that makes my point. If I have to spank you again for disobeying me, I’m going to use a leather strap to make sure I get my point across.”

“No.” Sarah shook her head, her gaze lowering to the floor. “No strap.”

“Sarah, do you understand what I just said? That’s the agreement. I was going to use the strap tonight, but since you realize you did wrong, I’ll make the arrangement we just talked about. If you refuse, then I will use the strap tonight. It’s your choice.”

“Can I make a choice not to have the strap at all, ever?” She could hear the tension in her own voice.

“Yes, if you behave yourself after today, then you won’t have to worry about it, will you?”

She sighed and nodded. “You’re right. I’m truly sorry about today. I wanted to come back, but I was afraid.”

His kiss was gentle. “I don’t ever want you to be afraid again. Ever. I will take care of you, and anything that happens.”

Their gazes locked and they stared into each other’s eyes. Finally, he pulled back and caressed her arms.

“Do you understand me?”

“Yes, Josh. You’ll take care of me. I know you will.”

“Then stop disobeying me. You belong to me, now, and I to you. We’re together, even if we’re not yet married.”

She nodded then tensed when he said, “We’ll use the sofa. A good spanking will remind you of what I just said.”

Sarah knew yelling would do no good, and fighting him about the spanking would simply mean that he would bring out the strap tonight, and not later. And, if she was good and didn’t do anything wrong, maybe the strap wouldn’t have to come out at all.

Still, she didn’t want to be spanked. She thought hard about how to get out of it, then sighed.

“Ben will be back soon.”

“I told Ben I’d turn on a lamp near the front window when we were ready for you to go home. He won’t be back before then, and you need to stop stalling. Sarah, I’m going to go and sit on the couch. I want you to come over and place yourself across my lap. I’ll lift your skirts and lower your bloomers enough to deliver a proper spanking.”

He walked to the couch and sat down. Sarah wanted to run for the door. But she knew that wasn’t the proper thing to do. She crossed to him, her hands shaking, and let him help her as she lay across his lap.

He lifted her skirts and she grasped a pillow that lay on the sofa. When he lowered her bloomers, she moaned softly.

“Joshua, please. Don’t spank me. I promise it won’t happen again. Please, please don’t spank me.”

He rubbed her bottom, which made her sigh. Maybe he would listen. Maybe he wouldn’t spank her.

“Sarah, you know this is necessary. Maybe you’ll learn to listen to me. Getting your father to change his mind about this isn’t going to be easy, and I have to have your full cooperation. You have to listen to everything I say.”

His hand slapped her cheeks. She yelped and he slapped her bottom a few more times, alternating between the cheeks. His hand was landing harder than it had yesterday, or maybe it was just that her bottom was already sore from the spanking she’d received.

“Okay, I think that’s enough,” she said softly, fighting back tears.

“Sarah, I’ve hardly started.” And he was right. The spanking increased in intensity, his hand hitting first one cheek and then the other. Her bottom throbbed as each swat landed.

Sarah tried to roll off of him, to get away from him. The stinging from his hand spread through her bottom, and she cried out.

“Stop! Please, I said I was sorry.”

“You will stop fighting me.” His hand came down harder and harder. “And you will listen! Don’t you want to marry me? Do you want to marry Earnest?”

“No! No! I want to stay with you. I want to be your wife. You have to believe me.”

“Then you have to listen to me, Sarah.”

“Oh, Josh! Ouch! Ouch!” The words came out on cries as his hand landed on her burning buttocks. She knew his hand had to hurt, too. Why was it that he wasn’t stopping? She would ache tomorrow worse than she had today.

Finally, when she thought she could stand no more, he stopped, his hand rubbing her flesh as if to soothe it.

“Tell me again why you’re being spanked.”

“Because I didn’t do as you said. I promised you I would, and I didn’t. I’m sorry, Josh. I was frightened and allowed myself to listen to my mother. It won’t happen again.”

“Just to make sure. A few more hard, even strokes. The next time you think about disobeying me I want you to think about this spanking, about the way your bottom is burning right now. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, Josh. Very clear. I’m so sorry.” He delivered several more hard slaps, then rubbed her bottom again. Just when she thought he was done, that he wouldn’t spank her any more, he did. Four more hard slaps were delivered to each cheek.

Sarah’s tears fell again and she sniffled, burying her head in the pillow that she clutched. When Josh turned her and lifted her into his arms she settled into his chest, loving the feel of his arms around her, but hating the throbbing pain in her backside.

“Never again, Sarah. Do you understand me?”

“You mean you won’t spank me anymore?” She lifted a hopeful gaze to his face. He wiped her tears and kissed her nose.

“You know what I mean.”

She nodded and he kissed her gently.

“Let’s get you home before your mother discovers you’re gone. I don’t think it will take long for your father to get here. I’m sure by Monday, at the latest, he and Mr. Hall will be in town. Then, the real struggle will begin and we need to make sure we have a united front, with no cracks.”

“None,” Sarah said. “I want to be your wife, Josh, and I will obey you. I promise.”

Josh called it so well. Her father sent telegrams the day after her second spanking, and the day after that, the tone of each one harsher and harsher as his wife didn’t answer him.

On the third day, a telegram arrived that said: “We will arrive Monday. Meet me in Denver. Bring daughter and all her things. We will leave immediately.”

“He doesn’t even call her by her name,” Josh said as he crumbled the paper. “Bring daughter. The idiot.”

Ben laughed as he took the paper from his brother and threw it into the fire in his office.

“It said we, though. That means that he’s bringing Earnest Hall, your rival.”

Josh cleared his throat, but didn’t answer.

“What’s your next move?”

“Sarah and I have talked about getting married, but she doesn’t want to embarrass her family. I think I’ll talk with her father, and with Earnest Hall. If that doesn’t work, then we won’t have a choice. We’ll go to Denver and marry.”

“What if Sarah won’t agree?”

“She will. She’s agreed to it as a last resort. I hate the idea, though. I want Sarah to have a large wedding, a beautiful one with flowers and the perfect dress. I want it to be a day she remembers forever. Running away to Denver won’t be perfect, and it won’t be something that she remembers forever.”

“Sure she will,” Ben said. “She’ll be with you, and that’s what matters. I’m proud of you, little brother, for not compromising her before now.”

“I love her too much for that. I can wait until she’s Mrs. Joshua MacAllister.”

Ben turned his face to the fire. “Are you going to tell her that her father’s on his way?”

“No. Her mother is already making noises about them leaving next week, and Sarah’s already worried enough about everything that’s going on. No need to worry her about something she has no control over.”

Ben laughed. “Her mother is something else. You’re the one who gets to deal with her once she’s your mother-in-law.”

“She’s be in St. Louis, and we’ll be here,” Josh said. “Things will go just fine as long as she stays that far away. I’m thinking I won’t tell her when the kids are born. Maybe I’ll wait until they’re ten, or fifteen years old.”

Ben laughed again, his shoulders shaking. “Sarah’s too much of a dutiful daughter for you to do that. So, before Mrs. McKay tries to leave next week Sarah’s father will be here and this will all be worked out.”

“One way or another,” Josh said. “You know what this means, don’t you? You’re the last single MacAllister brother. You’re going to have to find a bride.”

“Maybe, maybe not. We’ll see how things work out, but right now I’m not pushing for anything. Besides, there’s nobody in this town that I would want to marry. You got the last good one.”

“You could marry Aunt Becky.”

“That would make me your brother, and your uncle. Just a little too strange,” Ben said. “Besides, she’s a good ten years older than I am. And she’s never looked at me twice.”

“She’s a diamond in the rough who would make someone a perfect wife.”

“I agree. But that someone is not going to be me. Besides, being sheriff is a full-time job. I might as well be married to my job, and I get great cooking at the boarding house, and from all my wonderful sisters-in-law.”

He gave his little brother a curious look. “Sarah can cook, right?”

“Yes, she can. But that’s not an open invitation for you to drop by every night. Once a week will do, thank you very much.”

“Not a bad idea,” Ben said. “I’ll have four married brothers, and will eat at each of their houses one night a week. That takes care of four nights, and leaves me with three at the boarding house for meals. Perfect.”

Josh stepped into the store, amazed at the number of people who were there; and amazed that Sarah was there by herself.

“Where’s your mother?” he whispered in her ear as he stepped behind the counter to take jars of jam from the shelves.

“She went home to take a nap,” she said, turning so the customers couldn’t hear her. “She figured that since you were gone, it was okay to leave me alone.”

Josh laughed. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“Yes, but Josh, she’s making noises about the fact that she hasn’t received a telegraph from my father. She’s going to send one tomorrow morning, if nothing comes tonight.”

Josh winked at her. “It’s taken care of. As a matter of fact, we received a telegram from him just recently that said he would be here on Monday.”

“He’s coming here? With Earnest? But that’s terrible news. He’ll force me to get married here, then have another ceremony in St. Louis for everyone to attend. Joshua, why didn’t you tell me this?”

“Because you would worry, and I didn’t want you to. Relax, Sarah. It’s taken care of. Unfortunately, though, Ben burned the original telegram so as soon as the store clears out I’m going across the street to see if Corbin can get me another one.”

“What if he doesn’t remember what it said?”

“I remember. Every last word. Now, you’re not to worry, understand?”

“Yes.” She shook her head, but Josh could tell there were butterflies in her stomach.

He leaned closer to her. “When the store’s empty, come into the back room and I’ll give you a huge kiss. How’s that sound?”

Sarah’s face lit up and Josh’s heart beat all the faster for it.

“It sounds perfect.”

It wasn’t long before the store was empty. Josh hurried Sarah into the back room and smothered her face with kisses, placing them around her mouth and cheeks and chin until she giggled.

Their lips were planted firmly together when Mrs. McKay called for Sarah from the front of the store.

“Oh, she’ll know.”

“Relax. I’ll go out the back door and get her telegram and then come into the front like nothing happened.”

He hurried away, praying he could make it out the back door before Mrs. McKay made it through the curtain.

“What are you doing back here?” Sarah turned toward her mother, praying her lips didn’t have the ‘just kissed look’, that Vanessa had warned her about at the house her second night back in town.

“Just looking for some things.”

“What things? Is that boy here?”

Sarah narrowed her eyes. “He’s not here, and he’s not a boy, Mother, he’s a man. He runs his own business and he makes good money.”

“Humph. What kind of money can he make when he has to hire a woman to help him? Can’t he afford to hire a male clerk?”

Sarah’s cheeks stung with embarrassment, and her anger crept higher.

“Do you think so little of me, Mother? Do you not think my work is as good as a man’s?”

“Of course it isn’t, Sarah, don’t be ridiculous. Women can’t do the things men do. That’s why we marry and have babies. When you’re married to Mr. Hall, you’ll realize that.”

“I’d rather marry Joshua, and stay here in Mac’s Crossing.” There, she’d said it. When they were in St. Louis, she’d never said anything, since she didn’t know how Joshua felt about her. All she had said was she wanted to live in the Crossing, not in St. Louis.

Now that she knew Josh loved her, though, she could say what she wanted to say. Her mother stared at her, her face going white.

“We’re leaving. Today. Let’s go and pack our things.”

“No.”

“Sarah Michelle! Don’t you speak to me that way.” Her mother grabbed her arm and twisted her around, landing a large swat on Sarah’s bottom.

Sarah pulled away from her, her eyes glowing with anger. “You can’t treat me like that, Mother. I’m a grown woman.”

“You are an unmarried woman who still lives under her father’s care. You will do as you’re told.”

“Sarah?” Josh’s voice came from the front of the store. Sarah darted around her mother, sidestepping her grab and rushed to him. He stood in the doorway, a telegraph clutched in his hands.

“Ah, Mrs. McKay. This just came for you.” He thrust the paper at her as she came through the doorway.

She grabbed it from him and read it, her eyes squinting. “Very well. We’ll stay here until Monday, and then we’re gone. Sarah, you will come home with me this instant.”

“No, I won’t. I told you, Mother. I love Josh, and I won’t marry Mr. Hall, no matter what you say.”

Sarah thought her mother would topple over in anger. She stared at Sarah, and then at Josh. Sarah could tell she was thinking about dragging her across town to Becky’s house, but she was too afraid of the scene it would cause.

Instead, she wheeled on Josh.

“This is your fault. You’ve ruined everything. I never should have let her come back here.”

“Sarah’s a grown woman, Mrs. McKay. She can do as she likes.”

“She will do as she’s told, and she won’t be back here again, I can guarantee that.” Her mother’s face had gotten so red that Sarah thought she would explode.

“Mother. I love him.”

“What does that have to do with it? Earnest Hall is an important man in your father’s firm, and he is helping your father to get a large promotion. You’re wedding will insure that the deal goes through, and that your father doesn’t have to work any harder as he ages.”

Sarah stared at her, her mouth open. “Are you telling me you sold me to him so that he’d promote Father? How could you do that to me?”

“What does it matter to you?” She grabbed Sarah’s arm and pulled her close. “You will not mess up this plan.”

“How could you use me like this? Don’t you care about me at all? I hate you!” Mrs. McKay pulled her hand back to slap Sarah’s face, but Josh grabbed her.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. I happen to know the sheriff.” He released her hand and stepped in between the two women. “Perhaps you need to go and rest, Mrs. McKay. A good lie down will make you feel much better.”

“I’m not leaving without Sarah. You will never be alone with her again.”

Sarah stared at them as they stared at each other. Then she gently put her hand on Josh’s back.

“It’s almost time to close. I’ll go to Becky’s house with her. Why don’t you come by tonight so we can talk?”

“No.” Mrs. McKay’s voice was stern. “He is not welcome in my home.”

“Then it’s a good thing we’re staying in Becky’s home,” Sarah said. “I’m sure she will welcome Josh.”

Her mother stared at her, her mouth open. Finally she said, “How dare you speak to me that way.”

“It’s easy, Mother. And there is a very large part of me that wishes I’d done it a long, long time ago.”