A couple of hours later the barbecue was over, but several neighbors lingered by the bonfires, retelling outlaw stories. Beth had played a few songs on the fiddle again before she had retired inside to take care of Grayson. She hadn’t been needed, not with Kathy, and his family doting on him, but Beth had bathed him and sang to him softly until he slept. His grandfather had collected him saying he would like for his grandson to sleep in his room. She had handed over her sleeping son.

She quite enjoyed being on the Triple K ranch, and she loved the warmth of the large rambling house. It was never short of laughter, the rumble of male voices, and the smell of baking bread and biscuits, bacon, beef, and roasted pork. It had been a long day, and she was tuckered out, needing to sleep more than anything else. Yet Beth felt so uncertain. Joshua’s family was lovely, and the very thought of her son growing away from them brought a lump to her throat. They loved him already, and she could see herself easily falling into the rhythm of this homestead.

Taking a deep breath, she stood up from the copper bathtub, dried herself, then dressed in a chemise, pantalets, stockings, and a simple white dress. She slipped her feet into slippers and left her hair rippling over her shoulders and down her back. Making her away from her room and down the winding staircase, she entered the large living room, the boisterous laughter tugging a smile to her lips. Beth scanned the room. Joshua was nowhere to be found, and instinctively she glanced outside, to see him walking away from the main house, toward a path that led to the forest.

Her heart hitched. Though surrounded by his family, he was still a lone wolf, the dangerous kind. She’d seen that the men on the ranch respected him, admired him even, but Joshua wasn’t a man others could be comfortable around. What was out there and not by the fire with his family?

“Go to him,” Laura Kincaid said softly.

Beth's head snapped around to see his mother standing close by, her kind eyes assessing and probing, and knowing.

Heat flushed along Beth’s cheek. “I am here to put Grayson to bed and—”

“Grayson is more than fine, Beth. I do not think August has gotten tired of the fact he has a grandson yet.”

Beth glanced at the men by the fire. August was sitting in a large rocker, with Grayson curled contentedly on his chest. Her little man was still sleeping, and there was a look of peace on his grandfather’s face that brought an ache in her heart. “Thank you, Mrs. Kincaid.”

“My dear, I think it’s about time you called me Laura.”

Beth smiled and made her way outside, following the path she had seen Joshua take. She stepped into the forest surprised to see there was a well-worn path beyond the first cusp of large oak trees and junipers.

“Joshua?”

“I’m here.” He was leaning against the bark of a tree.

“Where are you going?”

“To my cabin.”

She raised her gaze to his. “Why do you have a cabin away from the main house?”

There was a beat of silence, and then he said, “Sometimes I need the space to clear my head…and there is just too much talking down there.”

She moved a bit closer. “To clear your head from what?”

He looked away from her for a moment and then held out his hand. She didn’t hesitate to walk over and thread her fingers through his. He tugged her along the path, and they strolled in silence for a few minutes. He veered left into a clearing, lush with thick grass, and she could hear the babble of a brook close by. They stopped, and she peered up at him, nervous anticipation burning through her veins. The glow of the moonlight bathed everything in silvery moonbeams, and she could see his expression as he considered her. It was stark, lonely and intense.

It occurred to her how little she knew the man before her. There were depths she hadn’t even begun to understand, but she desperately wanted to discover. He removed his hat and let it fall to the ground, lowered himself onto the grass and tugged her down with him. It felt natural to use the firm muscles of his arm as a sort of pillow as she lay back and stared at the starlit sky.

“I like being alone.”

His response was so simple and stark. She thought about that for a minute, for she was the opposite. When all was silent the memories of her weakness and shame rose and choked her. She loved laughter, family, and friendship. Though she supposed there were times she relished solitude. “Is that why you have a wandering spirit?”

He grunted, and she laughed lightly. “I’ve heard that a lot in the last few days. Your Ma says you have been drifting from you were a boy. You would leave home for weeks at times, sometimes months.”

“I love the land, its rawness and beauty are unmatched. Sometimes I come here, lay on the grass and simply consider the stars.”

“And what do you think about when you stare at the heavens, Joshua Kincaid?”

“Life. Things I have done, things I have not done. I come here almost every night and talk myself out of climbing through your window, spreading you wide and then licking up all your sweetness.”

Her head snapped up to find him staring at her. At that angle, she could not see him entirely, just a slash of arrogant cheekbones, the arch of his perfect black brows. She waited for her heart to settle back into her chest. A few small animals rustled under the bushes and the crickets chirped, the sound rhythmic and soothing. “Why haven’t you?”

“I’m a patient man.”

And she got the sense he was waiting for something, but what? She froze as a thought occurred to her. What if he waited for her to offer herself? What if he thought that night back in Liberty he had taken her choice? The notion felt far-fetched…yet, the emotion that tore through Beth had a lump forming in her throat, and she knew with every part of her soul, if Joshua had to wait months, years, he would until she was ready. The heart of the man revealing himself to her was nothing like his reputation. She had heard the whispers of him, even before she’d met him.

He was lawless, savage, and far more dangerous than any man she had ever known. "When you just rode into Liberty…there was a man in the saloon, he said you'd killed over a hundred men."

He met her eyes for a moment, and she could have sworn there was a spark of humor in those piercing green eyes. Then his lips twitched, confirming her assessment. "You believe every drunken tale you hear?”

“No, that’s why I’m asking. I know your reputation, Joshua Kincaid. In both Liberty and Blue Lagoon, I’ve heard the whispers in town and even on the ranch, they say you’ve killed men.”

He dipped into his pocket, rolled a smoke and lit it. “I’ve told you already, none that didn’t deserve it.”

“They say you are as tough as the men who ride the outlaw trails, maybe even tougher.”

“I’m a rancher,” he said mildly. “And a fighting man when needed. Nothing more.”

And Beth wondered if she could ever present him to her mother as Grayson's father. Her mother lived an elegant life amongst Boston elites. Her life was political dinners, balls, and the theatre. The kind of life Beth would lead again, once she returned to her mother. But hadn't she lived a similar experience in Virginia? Her father had owned one of the most extensive cotton plantations and had been much respected by their society.

“Do you recall the first man you killed?” She wasn’t sure why she asked him, but Beth couldn’t understand the will it must take to relieve someone of their very existence. The coldness of heart and nature it must take. Joshua must have it, and despite knowing that she was falling deeper and hopelessly in love him. She had never known her heart could be this stubborn and complicated.

“I was sixteen,” he said quietly. “And it was two, one right after the other.”

Horror congealed in her chest. “You were so young.”

“I was already a man.”

She stared at the blue beauty of the sky, thinking how different their lives had been. “In Virginia, boys of sixteen were shyly asking girls to walk with them by the river. When I was sixteen, I was busy worrying about what laces and hats to buy, and how I would flirt with a beau when he came calling,” she said softly. “Why did you kill them?”

“They needed killing.”

She turned her head, the grass rustling beneath her, to meet his regard. "I’m certain it was more than that.”

“I was on a cattle drive with my father. We were passing through El Paso, and there was a farm. I heard a scream. I went to investigate, and there was a young woman, and there were two of them." He looked up into the sky and laced his fingers behind his head. "One was watching, and he'd already taken his turn to rape her, the other was just starting. I thought to run for my Pa, but by the time I would reach our campfire, maybe they would have killed her. I shot the man who was about to rape her. Then I knifed the other."

She stared at him in bemusement. “It never occurred to you to just take them to the law? You had the advantage, you could have stopped them with a word.”

“Men like those wouldn’t stop with a word. They would have drawn on me, thinking I was a tenderfoot.”

He was so sure of his convictions.

“Your mother told me about the girl you rescued from the stagecoach robbery. That took a lot of courage, knowing you were one against six.”

He said nothing to that, and they stayed silent for a while. Beth was painfully aware of the need crawling through her for him, and she would probably have to be the one to seduce him. Her entire body flushed, and she bit her lower lip.

“I saw you this morning, riding the range by yourself.”

“And what of it?” she asked archly.

“It was the first time you were heading out so far on your own.”

“I had my knife and a gun.”

His lips curved into a smile and she glanced away grinning.

“Do you feel safer?”

She turned her head to face him once more. Because of you. The awareness settled over her like a warm blanket. “In some instances,” she whispered.

Knowledge lit in his eyes. He brushed his fingertips along the curve of her throat. “Like now?”

He was so much bigger than her first husband. So much less predictable. He possessed the deadly grace and power of a mountain lion, yet he had never hurt her. “Like now.” Kiss me, Joshua.

At that moment, the certainty that Beth had always felt that she would never marry another man trembled. Yearning struck her in the stomach, thick and undeniable. Just perhaps there could be a life with Joshua, they could be a family, and suddenly she wanted it more than her next breath. But, Joshua Kincaid was apparently a man of violence. No sort of man she would ever have met or taken a walk with back at home in Virginia, and certainly not the sort of man she should be hungering after. Except he made her feel intensely alive and desired. If the world were a different place and if he were a different man, just perhaps she would marry again, and just maybe, she would marry Joshua Kincaid.

“Bethany?”

“Yes, Joshua?”

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?” she asked achingly soft, though she knew. There was a hunger brewing inside for his touch, and she did not want to deny its existence or argue it away.

“Like you want to be broken in to ride.”

The words were crude, but his voice was tender, questioning.

“Only by you, Joshua Kincaid.”

She felt as if the layers of her dress were being stripped away until there was nothing left to shield her from his burning gaze. With a wild daring she hadn’t dreamt she possessed, she drew her legs up so that the soles of her feet were flat on the thick grass. Her dress rode up to her shins, and further up to her thighs when she splayed her legs wide to his shocked, aroused, gaze. A hiss slipped from him, and he slapped a hand to his forehead, staring at the night sky.

“I’m not an easy lover, brown eyes. That night in the saloon I took it easy on you.”

The sensations that burned low in her belly had her licking her lips. “If I wanted easy, I would have already been on a train to Boston days ago.”

Beth lay there, her heart and her breath trembling, waiting for his next move. It came without words. He launched to his feet and held out his hand. She gripped it, he tugged her up and started to climb the trail where the forest got denser. They said nothing else, nor did he release her. The tension mounted inside Beth, along with blistering arousal. She could not explain the desire she had for him, nor did she want to. She only wanted to bask in the delight of the moment, and the pleasure she knew he would share. The trail got denser, the pale moon splashing against the sky.

The night was alive with the sounds of the crickets as they made their music and the whispering of the wind between the trees. Beth swore she could hear the thunder of Joshua’s heartbeat. She could certainly feel the tension and the raw power in him. At this moment she could feel nothing restrained about him, nothing tamed. Yet she didn’t feel threatened, just treasured.

She wasn't sure how long they walked, then they burst from the woods into a clearing. Her breath caught at the beauty of the place. A large log and stone cabin with a wraparound porch loomed. Tall pine trees surrounded the cabin, and a gentle breeze rolled down the mountains swaying the grass. He led the way on a beaten path toward the steps leading up the porch. The door was opened, and he went inside first, his gaze scanning the large room. He pulled her inside, and she had the faint impression of somewhere large and rustic before all other thoughts vanished under the hot lash of his mouth claiming hers.

He swung her into his arms, made several steps, then tumbled with her onto a mound of blankets, splitting her legs wide. Joshua came over her with his powerful body, never once releasing her lips. Finally, they broke apart, her lips felt bruised and well kissed.

With frantic fingers she dragged his shirt from his trouser, helping him to push it over his head. The raw, untamed power of his body enthralled her. Muscles shifted and twisted over his chest, and her mouth went dry. His body was a beautiful work of art, and she wanted to worship him. She pressed several kisses against his jaw, desperate to taste his lips once more. Joshua tugged down her gown, the simple style of the dress giving him easy access.

Her nipples throbbed. They were so tightly swollen they ached with the need to be touched. She whimpered, then moaned as he trailed kisses over her neck and down to her breast where he sucked the swollen nub of her nipple until it throbbed.

Sweet heavens. He groaned, releasing her nipple, trailing hot licks and kisses up to her throat, along her jaw, and then to her lips, kissing her with carnal hunger. Impatient hands pushed the bottom part of her dress up to her hips and ripped open her pantalets. The callous tip of his finger stroked up her inner thigh until he reached the aching heart of her sex. Unbearable excitement twisted through her veins. His fingers delved between her swollen folds to caress. He jerked open his belt buckle, unfastened his pants. Joshua wasn’t gentle, but she didn’t need that. The wait had been too long, the ache had been too deep.

He dragged her hips beneath him, grabbed her buttock, nudged his manhood at her already wet entrance, and stabbed deep. Beth whimpered as her flesh tingled and her muscles fought to accommodate his entry.

She pulled her lips from his, dropping her face into the crook of his neck, breathing through the brutal arousal that seized her. He withdrew, thrust deeply and unrestrained and started to ride her. Oh God. A wild cry tore from her at the fierce way in which he claimed her, her body shaking under the jarring impact, her breath hitching at the bite of pain twining with ecstasy, her soul shaking at the wanton who rose inside of her. “Oh God, Joshua, please!”

“Please what? Ride you slower…?” When she made no answer, the muscles of his back flexed beneath her hands, his hips snapped harder, and the pressure increase tenfold. “Rougher?”

A whimper tore from her throat when he repeated the delightful motion.

“Is it rougher you want, brown eyes?”

She could barely breathe, let alone speak. “Oh God, yes.”

His masculine chuckle of appreciation made her blush, but then she forgot everything as he hitched her legs higher to wrap way up his back almost around his shoulders. Then he rode her rough, hard, and for a very long time. Her legs trembled, her hips lifting as he worked her with hard, penetrating strokes, causing her to whimper with the edge of pleasure-pain. Sweat slicked her body as his skin slid against hers, her fingers tangled in his hair, and her breath trembled from her lips to his. Beth forgot to scream, to even think, lost in the bone-jarring pleasure that consumed her. All the months of emptiness fled, all the doubts as to who this man was to her disappeared, and she could only burn with him as he loved her over and over. A wave of breath-taking heat consumed Bethany, and she convulsed in his arms, screaming her pleasure into the crook of his neck.

She held her breath when he pulled from her, her thighs falling wider apart as his broad shoulders wedged between them. He licked her. She sobbed. It was all too much, and then it was never enough. Beth grabbed his hair as he stroked her sex over and over with his tongue, dragging wild pleas and demands from her throat. He rose above her, and she gasped when strong hands gripped her and flipped her onto her stomach. The heat of him pressed along her back, and he parted her thighs, and slowly invaded her quivering channel.

Beth fisted the blankets beneath, holding on as her man pulled her to her knees, arched her back, and started to ride her. It was agony and ecstasy all rolled into one, and she didn't want it ever to end. The sound of damp skin meeting damp skin echoed in the cabin. The pressure built inside, and far too soon pleasure rolled over her in hot, devastating waves. She screamed into the blankets when he rode her through the release, peaking her desire once more. Bringing her to another release, his thick manhood thrust through her clenching muscles with mindless fervor until with a hoarse shout he found his release in the warmth of her body.