“Or I come back with the preacher, and you act as if you are happy to marry me. Then you will pack your things and move into my hotel.”
Hardly a choice. Either way she would be in his bed, entwined in his life, trapped where he wanted her. She forced her voice not to tremble, clenching her fist at her side to prevent her body from shivering. “There is no need to drag me into the house.”
A low pleased laugh spilled from him. He stepped in too close for comfort flushing her breast to his chest, and lifted his hands to caress her cheek. “Did you just accept my proposal, sweet cakes?”
She glared at him mute, willing him to believe whatever he wanted.
“Did you hear that, boys,” he drawled silkily. “We will be having us a wedding tomorrow.”
He bent his head and slammed his lips down on hers. So crushing was his strength, her struggle did nothing to loosen the tight band of his arms. He forced his tongue passed her squeezed lips, bruising her mouth with his teeth.
Bile rose in her throat and Sheridan felt as if she would pass out.
He lifted his head. “A few of my boys will stay behind to ensure everything runs smoothly. If your cowhands think to interfere I will send their bodies to their family for burial, so keep them in line. I will return with the preacher.”
Her chest burned with impotent rage when his hand cupped the underside of her breast through her shirt.
“I will wait until our wedding night to take what you have denied me for months, sweet cake.” His low growl in her ears and his hardness against her hips curdled her stomach. “Soon I’ll be between these lily-white thighs of yours. Never had an English lady before. They say they are cold…but when I am done with you…you will only burn, and not in a sweet way.” After another rough kiss, he vaulted on his horse, wheeled and thundered away.
She swiped the back of her palm across her lips, trying to still her shaking frame. Relief filled her at his departure. If she still had her Winchester she probably would have shot him and be through with it all. Four men remained and they raked her frame with looks of lust. They cantered off, spreading out across the ranch. She spun on her heels and hurried inside the house. No matter what she could have done or said, Mr. Sullivan had already plotted for his men to stay, to watch her. She’d only made it easier on herself. For he would have stormed the house, and brutalized her if she had opposed him too strongly.
Mr. Sullivan’s thin veneer of pretending to be a gentleman had saved her many times from a more serious attack. But in his blind need to possess her, his intensity had changed over the past few weeks, causing her to develop a plan that petrified her—a plan that involved Elijah Kincaid. It was that or travel beyond Sullivan’s grasp, abandoning her home and her family.
She walked with determined steps, heart thumping, and hands trembling. Sheridan could not identify whether she felt fear or excitement at the thought of facing Elijah again. She cursed her fluttering stomach, the weakness only he could fill her with. She was in love with a man who held no affection for her. But she needed his protection. No, she needed him. Oh heavens, she did not want to leave her home. Not after fighting for so long to find a place where she belonged. She did not want to uproot Beth who had finally found a place where her nightmares did not haunt her. Sheridan would fight for her home, even if it meant turning to the only man who had the power to rip her heart and hopes to pieces.
Chapter Two
Although it was late summer, strong winds had already begun to creep in. Dusk had fallen, and the fireplace roared, heating the massive living room, shaving away the chill. Sheridan and Beth had waited in dread for one of Sullivan’s man to approach the main house, but had slowly relaxed when nothing happened. They had been plotting a course of action for the past couple hours, and Sheridan was desperate to act, if only to stop the jangling of her nerves.
“Are you sure?”
She nodded. “I have no choice, Beth.”
“You could marry him.”
A shudder shook Sheridan and distaste filled her mouth. “Marry Jericho Sullivan? Have you taken leave of your senses?”
Beth laid her swaddled son into the wooden cradle. “Grayson is finally asleep. He screamed so much when I fired the gun,” she murmured softly brushing her finger on his cheek. She straightened and hurried over to Sheridan, brushing aside the silver drapes.
She peered through the shutters looking over the eastern part of the range, and spied two of the hands Mr. Sullivan had left behind. “You understand why I must try, don’t you, Beth?” Sheridan needed assurance that she was making the right decision.
“He offered you marriage. There is talk in town, that he is considering running for the legislature. If you wed Mr. Sullivan, you would be married to one of the most powerful, and respected men in these parts.”
Sheridan snorted. “Respected? I think you mean feared.”
“Is it not the same thing out here?” Beth countered.
No, it wasn’t. Fear left a bitter taste in the mouth, made her stomach hollow, and made her heart ache. “There is something about him that gives me nightmares. He is the kind of man that can easily be cruel to a lady as I experienced today, and I know he will not give up.”
Beth glanced at her worriedly, and then with a soft sigh, she moved from the windows and sank into the camel colored settee’s plush depths. “What about Sebastian Dunn? He has offered to marry you twice. He is a nice sort of respectable man. Not rich, but at least he’s the manager of the town’s bank.”
“No, it is Elijah Kincaid I need.”
“And if he doesn’t want you?”
“I will make him want me,” Sheridan insisted stubbornly. “We have crafted a plan. I will stick with it.”
Beth reached for the jar on the table in front of her, poured lemonade into a glass and offered it to Sheridan. “Please do not underestimate Elijah. He is a Kincaid, Sheridan. And you are planning to compromise him into a life he does not want. You may be trading one bad choice for another if you refuse Mr. Sullivan, but pursue Elijah. Remember you are no longer in England. The rules here are…different, less polite. Elijah may not marry you even if he compromises you.”